A Little Cheer
by stella-pegasi
Summary: Atlantis is in a holiday mood with the exception of Richard Woolsey. But an important discovery interrupts the holiday cheer and puts several of Atlantis’s key personnel in danger and Richard Woolsey in the unique position of keeping one of them alive.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: A Little Cheer**

**Author: **stella_pegasi

**Rating: **T (violence, implied torture, some minor language, minor suggestive adult themes)

**Spoilers: **Major spoiler for "Irresponsible", mention of events in "Inquisition", leap of cannon that the Wraith accepted the gene therapy and it worked.

**Summary:** The holiday spirit has infused everyone on Atlantis with one exception, Richard Woolsey. An important discovery on the planet of a potential ally interrupts their holiday cheer and puts several of Atlantis's key personnel in danger and Richard Woolsey in the unique position of keeping one of them alive.

John S. / Richard W. / Rodney M / Teyla E. / Ronon D / Evan L / Carson B / assorted Atlantis personnel / original characters. Rated T (The story includes some whump, some fatal whump, and some adult themed insinuations along with some fairly minor language. Nothing too drastic, except for the fatal whump.)

**Disclaimer:** I do not own them; I would have treated them better.

**Notes: **I had really hoped to be posting this on Christmas Eve as a thanks to all of the authors and the readers of the Stargate Atlantis stories on . I have enjoyed and been inspired by the excellent stories that all of you have posted. However, life and the holidays and broadband issues got in the way; so here is the beginning of the story on New Year's Eve. I am only a week late. The story is complete but the last couple of chapters have not been proofed…or proofed as well as I can (forgive any errors that I miss). There are nine chapters so I am posting three today and will have the other six up by Saturday morning. Hopefully. Thank you again to all the authors for writing such great stories about our favorite show and to the readers who make it so much fun; I appreciate you all and wish all of you a wonderful 2010.

**A Little Cheer**

**Chapter One A Little Discord**

_Gate Room_

"Could you hold ladder steady? I'm going to fall off."

"Are you sure the event horizon won't vaporize that thing as soon as the gate activates?"

"No, major, it will not. The event horizon is contained within the inner rim of gate; I have made certain this is clearing area."

From his office, Richard Woolsey could hear all the commotion and decided that he needed to see exactly what was going on.

"Major, please hold ladder steady…I must get this secure."

Woolsey had been the director of the Atlantis expedition for nearly eighteen months and the men and women of Atlantis never ceased to amaze him. Only a few days before, a mission had gone awry when unknown aliens had captured several of their people; they were fortunate that they had not lost anyone. Yet, after all that, here was Dr. Radek Zelenka and Major Evan Lorne putting a large Christmas wreath on the top of the stargate.

"Sorry, doc, this is not the best ladder; it's kind of wobbly and you're pretty far up there."

"Yes, I know, major. I am afraid of heights, believe me, I know how high I am."

Woolsey walked over to Sergeant Chuck Campbell, the chief gate technician, and asked a very serious question.

"Sergeant, what will happen to them if the gate activates?" He looked at Chuck with a very worried look on his face.

Chuck resisted a smile and pointed to a crystal lying in a foam padded box on the DHD console. "Don't worry, sir. Dr. Zelenka took the control crystal out temporarily so that wouldn't happen."

"But what happens if a team needs to dial in?"

"Sir, there are no teams out, they've all returned. Major Lorne made sure of that before he would help Doctor Z."

"Oh, well, that's good." Woolsey thought it might be best just to retreat to his office and not ask anymore questions that made him look silly, no, uninformed; well, neither was a good choice.

"Thank you, Chuck."

Returning to his office, he wished he had never allowed the decorations in the first place.

_Mess Hall_

Woolsey entered the mess hall in mid-afternoon for a late lunch and found his second in command, Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, directing several Marines in the placement of a huge fir-like tree in the dining area. His mood darkened even more as he realized that there were several people simply standing around watching.

"Colonel, where did this tree come from?" The tree was a deep dark green with medium length needles and was well-shaped, the branches were thick and full and at almost fifteen feet tall, the tree nearly reached the high ceiling of the dining area. Woolsey had to admit to himself that the aroma from the fragrant tree was quite pleasing.

"Hey, Mr. Woolsey, the tree's a beauty, isn't it? Teyla, Ronon, and I went over to the mainland this morning to pick it up. Teyla gave Halling a description of what we were looking for and he found this tree. The Athosians helped us cut it down, tie it up, and transport it to the jumper. We didn't have a lot of room on the way back but the jumper smelled great." Sheppard was grinning like a kid.

The colonel was certainly enjoying himself, Woolsey thought. "Colonel, I didn't expect that the decorations would be so extensive. Is all this necessary?"

Sheppard seemed a bit surprised, "Take a look, see those Marines," pointing to the group that was securing the tree to the mess hall wall for safety. "Most of them have families that they have been away from for many months, some even years. We have military personnel and scientists that have been on Atlantis since we first arrived who think of this as home now. Yeah, they need this."

One of the Marines called out to the colonel, checking to see if the tree was straight. The colonel walked away and Woolsey found himself wondering about John Sheppard. While Woolsey was a very private man himself, the colonel was an enigma to him. Sheppard was gregarious, charming, with a wry sense of humor that belied the intensely private man that Sheppard truly was. The colonel wouldn't discuss his own family or his own feelings but he was very aware of the needs of the men and women of Atlantis and made every effort to take care of them. Looking around the room at all the decorations and all the people enjoying watching the tree put up, Woolsey thought perhaps the colonel was a bit too concerned about the happiness of the Atlantis expedition.

Deciding that the frivolity of the mess hall was a bit overwhelming, Woolsey grabbed his lunch and returned to his office.

_Office_

The next few days passed quickly for Atlantis; Woolsey had requested that all science departments begin working on their year-end reports for the IOA. The problem was most of the scientists were caught up in the holiday spirit and had no motivation to work on trivial things like year-end reports. He had never realized that studious scientists that always took things so seriously could party as the ones on Atlantis could. Perhaps the fact that they worked so hard and under such pressure gave rise to the mischievous fun that the scientists seemed to engage in more often than he liked. Even Dr. Rodney McKay, head of the science division, was balking at doing his reports but his excuse was that he was too engrossed in research on a new piece of Ancient tech. Woolsey didn't buy that for a second; on his daily rounds of the science department, he had found McKay actually wrapping a present.

Richard Woolsey was nothing if he was not organized and by the book. He was exasperated at the lack of productivity, the impromptu carol singing, and the popcorn and paper-ring garlands hanging from almost everything; there were candy canes, ribbons, menorahs, and dreidels everywhere. Not to mention that he had walked into the gate room and found the Marines on duty eating cookies laden with icing and 'sprinklely' things that someone brought them. Woolsey had reached the limit of his tolerance and summoned Sheppard and McKay to his office.

Both men knew that Woolsey was not happy about the holiday spirit that permeated Atlantis; the gloomy look on his face as he wandered the halls was a pretty good indicator. They had decided, prior to walking into the director's office, to act like they didn't have a clue what he wanted to see them about.

As Sheppard and McKay entered, Dr. Miko Kusanagi slipped past them and headed straight to Woolsey; she was wearing an elf's hat and carrying a basket full of large snowman cookies. She handed a cookie to Woosley, and then gave one to the colonel and to McKay.

"Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!" Miko smiled broadly as she left to spread cheer to the control room techs.

McKay was eating his cookie with a contented look on his face and Sheppard was tempted but he could tell Woolsey seemed quite displeased. The colonel decided it would be wiser to not appear to be feeling the holiday spirit; he would eat his cookie later.

"This is exactly what I asked the two of you here for, this has to stop." Woolsey was holding the cookie in his right hand, gesturing at the two men. "What is Dr. Kusanagi doing running around here in that silly hat handing out cookies when she should be attending to her duties in her lab? This is getting out of hand; with this holiday nearly two weeks away, I am putting a stop to all of these holiday festivities until Christmas Eve and Christmas Day."

McKay had a mouthful of cookie but he spoke up, a few crumbs falling on the floor, "Mr. Woolsey, Miko worked for three days straight on a project that Radek assigned to her; she slept on a cot in her lab. Radek requested that she have a day off to rest after she had worked so hard and I agreed. Miko is on her own time today and has the right to do as she pleases."

Woolsey just shook his head as if that wasn't an acceptable explanation. "I have made my decision and it is not open to discussion."

Sheppard felt that it might be prudent to not argue with Woolsey on his decision until he could figure out what was really going on. "Mr. Woolsey, I will let the military personnel know and Rodney will let the scientists know that they are to confine their celebration to those two days." He paused, "There are some people who will be celebrating other holidays such as Hanukkah and I believe there are two Islamic holidays during the month; I hope you will allow them to have their observances."

Rodney was giving him a 'what the hell are you doing' look and Sheppard slipped his hand below Woolsey's desk and made a side to side gesture to let McKay know to be quiet.

Woolsey paused for a moment somewhat stunned at how this conversation was going; he had expected a fight from Sheppard about his decision and did not get one. The colonel continued to surprise him. "Yes, of course, colonel; those who wish to celebrate their religious holidays should feel free to go ahead at the proper time."

Rising from his chair, Sheppard thanked Woolsey and turned to Dr. McKay, "Come on Rodney, we have a bit of work to do."

As soon as they were in the corridor and out of earshot of Woolsey, Rodney could no longer contain his anger, "Sheppard, what the hell are you thinking? Woolsey's acting like Scrooge and you are letting him do so without even a dissenting word?" Rodney grabbed Sheppard's arm to get the colonel to stop walking. "You know that a whole lot of people are going to be really pissed off. How can you let him do this without a fight?"

"Calm down, Rodney; I'm not happy about this either but I think there is more going on than Woolsey's willing to admit. Remember, he went back to Earth due to some kind of personal emergency during December last year and didn't come back until February when the Daedalus returned. He hasn't been here for a big holiday; hell, it took a lot of convincing to get him to approve the Halloween party."

Sheppard resumed walking and Rodney fell in beside him, "Do you know why he went back to Earth last year?"

"No, I don't believe he ever told anyone why he returned to Earth; maybe his bah humbug attitude now has something to do with what happened back there. I think we need to find out what's really going on with him. Meanwhile, let's just tell everyone to not be so obvious about having fun when Woolsey is around and for goodness sakes, don't let him know about the Secret Santa thing."

The residents of Atlantis found a way to have their eggnog, cookies, and holiday music without Woolsey finding out. They set up lookouts and used a private channel on the COM system that Chuck set up for them to let everyone know the director's whereabouts. There had been some close calls but so far, they were still able to have some holiday cheer.

_Control Room_

Off-world missions continued regardless of the time of year and six days before Christmas, Lieutenant Isaacs radioed in from P3X- 971, whose government had petitioned to join the Pegasus Coalition. His team, along with three scientists had gone to do a preliminary survey on the planet's natural resources, part of the approval process for admittance. The lieutenant asked to speak to Colonel Sheppard and Mr. Woolsey.

Sheppard entered the control room as Mr. Woolsey addressed Isaacs. "Lieutenant, this is Woolsey, Colonel Sheppard has joined me. Why did you need to speak to us?"

"Mr. Woolsey, colonel, the governor has requested that the two of you gate to the planet and meet with their assembly. They informed me they are insulted that Atlantis sent lower echelon representatives to initiate the discussion of their petition. I'm afraid they are insisting that you both come or they will withdraw their petition. Sirs, I believe that if they withdraw the petition, it would be unfortunate."

Sheppard interjected, "Why do you think that would be unfortunate, lieutenant?"

"Sir, the scientists found something that I think will be of great interest to the SGC. I think it would be better to let Dr. Kimura explain his discovery."

"Mr. Woolsey, Colonel Sheppard, it is Dr. Kimura; we found a mineral on Tegera that we were not expecting to find. We found a very large deposit of naquadah near the capital city; I believe there may be other deposits on the planet as well."

The soft, low voice of the Japanese geologist was hard to hear and Sheppard wasn't certain he had heard what he thought he heard, "Doctor, could you repeat that, did you say you found naquadah on that planet?"

"Yes, colonel, we found naquadah, large deposits of naquadah here."

Woolsey and the colonel exchanged glances and Woolsey said without hesitation, "Colonel, I believe that it appears we will be going off-world." He continued, "Gentlemen, let's review here. Lieutenant, let the Tegerans know that the colonel and I will grant their request and that we will send word as to when we will gate to the planet. I would like for your team and the scientists to return to Atlantis as soon as you have delivered that message, we will debrief as soon as you arrive."

"Understood sir, we are all here at the gate now along with a couple of Tegeran security guards. I'll have them relay the message and we should be on Atlantis in a matter of a few minutes. Isaacs out."

Sheppard tapped his COM, calling for his team and Major Lorne to join them in the conference room. He asked Sgt. Campbell to inform Dr. Zelenka and Dr. Keller of the meeting. The colonel then headed down the gate room stairs to meet the incoming team.

_Conference Room_

Mr. Woolsey pulled the returning scientists aside and spoke to them for a few minutes. Colonel Sheppard did the same with Lt. Isaacs's team before they all entered the conference room where the rest of the command leadership of Atlantis was waiting. Woolsey opened the briefing by asking Lt. Isaacs to bring them up to date on the situation on P3X- 971.

"Sirs, doctors, my team gated to P3X- 971 along with Dr. Kimura, Dr. Siris, and Dr. Rogers. Our mission objective was to make contact with the governor to deliver the initial response from the coalition to their petition and to begin the survey process that would lead to the final determination of their request to become coalition members. This first survey was to determine the natural resources of the planet which the inhabitants call Tegera as well as an initial look at their industrial capacity."

"While I stayed with Governor Lalrahn at the Assembly Hall which is in their capital city, Galaz, one member of my team and a Tegeran security guard accompanied each of the doctors as they began their surveys. I continued to go over the details of the survey requirements for admittance to the coalition with the assembly. About four hours later, Corporal Brenner radioed in that Dr. Kimura had made an important discovery. I ordered Cpl. Brenner to bring Dr. Kimura back to the Assembly Hall and asked the others to return as well."

Woolsey interrupted the lieutenant, "Lt. Isaacs, at what point did the governor asked for Colonel Sheppard and me to meet with them?"

The lieutenant turned to Mr. Woolsey, "Sir, as soon as Dr. Kimura made his report, the assembly asked us to step outside while they conferred. The Tegerans called us into the hall after approximately thirty minutes and at that time, Governor Lalrahn informed us that the assembly was unhappy. They claimed to be insulted that Atlantis sent lower level representatives to initiate the petition process instead of the leaders of Atlantis attending to their request. They were adamant that they would only continue talks with the two of you; otherwise they would withdraw their petition and the naquadah would not be available to the coalition."

Colonel Sheppard followed up, "Lieutenant, did the governor ask for Mr. Woolsey and me by name?"

"Yes, sir, they did." As Isaacs answered him, Sheppard noticed Teyla and Ronon exchange looks; he knew what they were thinking because he was thinking the same thing. Someone wanted Woolsey and him on that planet.

Dr. Kimura gave his report next and noted his surprise at the amount of naquadah ore found on the planet; naquadah was rare but quite often found in abundance when it was located. The estimated amount of the mineral on Tegera was certainly larger that the SGC had discovered previously. The other two scientists gave their reports on the ecological system of the planet and on industrial growth. The planet was one of the more advanced in the galaxy, with manufacturing, electricity, and motorized transportation. When the reports were completed, Woolsey dismissed the scientists and all of Isaac's team with the exception of the lieutenant, and then addressed Sheppard.

"Colonel Sheppard, thoughts?"

"I think it's fairly obvious that we need to meet with the Tegeran Assembly; finding such a large supply of naquadah is simply too important. We're going to have to deal with these people."

Woolsey nodded his head in response, "I agree, colonel; however, I want to inform the SGC before we gate to Tegera to begin discussions. This is an important discovery and Stargate Command will want a say in this. Dr. McKay, I imagine that the SGC will have questions that only you can answer regarding Dr. Kimura's discovery; please come with me."

As they left, Rodney instructed Zelenka to review the data and let him know if there were any anomalies. With that, Dr. Zelenka and Dr. Keller also exited the conference room leaving only Sheppard, his team, Lorne and Isaacs.

Sheppard started to speak, when Isaacs interrupted him. "Sir, I am sorry to interrupt but I have a concern that I wanted to discuss with you."

Sheppard knew that Isaacs was an experienced Marine and was in line for promotion to captain with in the next few months. The lieutenant was an intelligent and observant man; if he had a concern about the situation, Sheppard knew he needed to listen.

"Go ahead, lieutenant."

"Sir, when we first arrived and were escorted to the assembly hall, there were quite a few citizens there who had come to find out about the status of the petition. The governor made a point of mentioning how interested all of their citizens were in becoming coalition members. However, when we entered the hall after they discussed Dr. Kimura's find privately, I was surprised there were no citizens present. Most of the assembly members were still there but there were also five other men; men that we had not seen before, standing in an alcove near the front of the hall apparently attempting to hide from us. If they were intending to hide, they should have been more careful; from where we were standing both Cpl. Brenner and I could see them quite well."

"Also, sir, they were dressed differently from the Tegerans, who wear clothing made from really nice fabrics. These guys weren't exactly in uniform but they were all wearing clothing made from a rougher brown material. Their clothes gave the impression of uniforms but there were no insignias or decorations that we observed."

Teyla asked, "Lieutenant, neither you nor any of your team had seen these men outside of the assembly hall?

"No, ma'am, they were new faces to us but then we certainly didn't meet everyone there. For the most part, the Tegerans were very friendly; almost all of them greeted us as we passed, some offered us food and drink. But these guys didn't look friendly at all."

"Anything else, Isaacs?" The lieutenant nodded yes and Sheppard indicated for him to continue.

"Yes, sir, there was a real shift in the demeanor of Governor Lalrahn when those men were present. He seemed nervous and could barely look me in the eye. The others members of the assembly looked nervous as well. I don't know what happened but something seriously changed while we were waiting outside the assembly hall."

Sheppard looked at Ronon and Teyla whose faces reflected his concern, "Thanks, Isaacs; great intel, you did a good job. Go get checked out in the infirmary, make sure your team gets some food and rest, I want you to return with us."

"Yes, sir; thank you, sir." Isaacs left the conference room with a nod to the rest of Sheppard's team. As he left, they heard the familiar swoosh of the gate engaging; Woolsey apparently wasted little time contacting the SGC.

Ronon, who had been sprawled in his chair during the meeting straightened up, leaning his elbows on the table, "Sheppard, this sounds like a set-up."

"I agree, colonel. Lt. Isaacs is very perceptive; I believe what he said," Teyla looked pensive.

Sheppard nodded in agreement, "Isaacs is smart and has excellent observation skills and that's what concerns me, his instincts are good and I'm afraid he's right. Something's definitely going there and we may well be walking right into the middle of it. But there is no doubt that once the SGC and the IOA hear that there is a large deposit of naquadah on Tegera, we'll be going no matter the risk." The colonel rose, "I'm going to eavesdrop on Woolsey to see what the SGC thinks about all of this. I'll let you know."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two A Little Deal**

_Mess Hall_

As anticipated, the SGC and the IOA were extremely interested in the naquadah discovery. The Daedalus was already on its return flight to Pegasus and was scheduled to arrive on Christmas Eve and General Landry had redirected the George Hammond from the Milky Way to Pegasus to join her. The foremost expert on naquadah was Colonel Samantha Carter who was currently the commanding officer of the Hammond and if the find was as large as it appeared, the IOA wanted her there. Gen. Landry ordered Woolsey and Sheppard to begin negotiations with the Tegerans immediately.

After that first meeting with Landry, Sheppard had broached the subject of Atlantis command; there had been a time when Woolsey would have been adamant that if he went on a rare off-world visit, that the colonel would have to remain on Atlantis. One of them, according to regulations, had to be there at all times.

Woolsey had just looked at him and sighed, "Yes, colonel, I know, not only am I beginning to break my own rules, I am beginning to break the chain of command rules for Atlantis as well. I suppose in this instance that the situation is of such importance that we are just going to have to ignore the regulations." With that, he had dismissed the colonel citing he had a lot of work to do and that the colonel should return in an hour for another scheduled meeting with the general and to bring McKay with him. Sheppard felt the reality was that Woolsey didn't want to further discuss bending the rules.

Sheppard left Woolsey's office after yet another meeting, heading to the mess hall for dinner. He and Woolsey had just finished speaking with General Landry for the third time in as many hours and he was replaying the conversation in his head when McKay caught up with him.

"Hungry?" McKay asked as he hurried to match the colonel's long stride.

"Heading to the mess now, coming along?" Sheppard glanced at Rodney who had that look that Sheppard knew far too well, he was upset about something. Sheppard was pretty sure he knew what it was.

"So, you upset that Colonel Carter is on her way to take over your territory?"

"Why do you think I would be upset?"

"Well, when we met with the IOA and the SGC on what I think was the second call today, I'm losing track, the IOA scientist made a big deal about Sam being the only one who could possibly evaluate the naquadah. I have to admit that I was pissed that jerk from the IOA was going on as if there wasn't another brilliant scientist in the SGC."

Rodney looked genuinely surprised, "Thanks, Sheppard."

Sheppard grinned, "I was talking about Zelenka."

"Yeah, sure flyboy; I knew sooner or later that you would have to admit I was brilliant." Rodney flashed a grin for a few seconds and then his face became solemn again.

They reached the mess, Sheppard noticed that Rodney did not get as much food as he normally did and was too quiet. He usually sniped at the servers, asking all kinds of questions about the food and generally making a nuisance of himself. After they sat down, Rodney continued to be unusually quiet and that always made Sheppard nervous.

"So, you never answered me, are you upset that the IOA is sending Carter here to check out the naquadah?"

"No…yes…," he sighed, sitting back in his chair, "no, I'm not upset that Sam is coming, it will be good to see her. Sam is the expert; she's done almost all of the research conducted by the SGC on naquadah; she built the first naquadah generator. Sam should be involved in this. I just don't understand why the Hammond needs to come all this way when I know as much she knows, it's not like I'm not an expert as well."

Rodney paused; Sheppard waited for him to continue, "That IOA scientist that was in the meeting ranting on about naquadah; he's the same guy who wouldn't listen to Zelenka and me about the power needed to dial the ninth chevron on Icarus. He's the also the same IOA idiot who chose Rush to do that research; there's a big mistake for you. Rush or that IOA idiot couldn't hold their own against Sam; she has the most brilliant mind in the SGC."

Sheppard flashed a crooked grin at the scientist, "Did you just admit that Colonel Samantha Carter is smarter than you?"

Rodney looked at Sheppard for a few seconds before he answered, "If I did, and you tell anyone, I'll deny I ever said it. Besides, I was only talking about the SGC on Earth; I wasn't including Atlantis."

Sheppard laughed. "Right Rodney; there's hope for you yet."

They were just finishing their meal when Woolsey called them to his office and he didn't sound happy.

_Office_

They had both picked up cookies from the mess hall, Rodney taking four, and they were still eating as they walked into Woolsey's office. Woolsey was leaning back in his chair, engrossed in a file he was holding; Sheppard slipped a cookie onto his desk. Woolsey turned to acknowledge their presence and spotted the brightly decorated cookie; he glanced up, frowning at the colonel who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. He was well aware that the colonel's mood was about to change.

"Colonel, Dr. McKay, please sit. I just received word from General Landry; there has been a slight change in our directive. The IOA wants us to negotiate for all rights to the naquadah with the Tegeran Assembly."

"Mr. Woolsey, what are you saying? Are you telling us that the IOA wants the rights to all of the naquadah?" Sheppard asked.

'Yes, colonel, the IOA wants us to negotiate the rights on behalf of Earth."

McKay started to speak but Sheppard beat him to it, "Let me get this straight. We are going to cut out the coalition and make a sweet deal for ourselves?" Woolsey didn't or wouldn't acknowledge that the colonel was correct. "I don't think I have to remind you that we were on Tegera representing the Pegasus coalition not the IOA. Did you remind the IOA of that?"

"Colonel, this matter is closed. There is no planet in the Pegasus galaxy that is capable of refining naquadah; it is of no use to anyone here."

With Woolsey's last comment, McKay exploded. "No use? Let me tell you something, Woolsey, we would have never survived on Atlantis if it hadn't been for the naquadah generators. Can you imagine what having a power source like this would do to help the development of these planets? As for there not being anyone in Pegasus who can refine the ore, that's a lie, Woolsey. The Genii could pull off a refinery, hell, even the Travelers could; they both already have the basic technology and they're smart people. From what we heard in the meeting, Tegera already has metallurgy, they are capable of refining the ore and there are probably more worlds we don't know of yet that could. Damn it, we can build a refinery on Tegera. This is their galaxy; they have a right to their own natural resources."

Sheppard put his hand on Rodney's arm. "Calm down, Rodney, I have the feeling there is nothing that either of us can say that will matter to the IOA. Mr. Woolsey, we've had a tenuous relationship with the coalition planets at best. A relationship, I recall, that you committed us to in order to keep my team and Atlantis from being found guilty of crimes against the people of Pegasus. If they think we have betrayed them, a trial will be the least of our worries."

"Believe me gentlemen, I understand how you feel but we have our orders and before you ask colonel, General Landry has ordered you to follow the IOA directive. If you prefer to hear that from him, I will have Amelia dial the SGC for you."

Sheppard fidgeted for a second, but then shook his head no, "That won't be necessary; I will accept the general's orders through you."

"Then, that's all for tonight; we will leave for the village at 0900 hrs. Please be in the conference room with all team leaders by 0800 for final mission briefing. Good night, gentlemen."

_Lab_

Sheppard knew that Rodney was about to explode and he steered the scientist out of the control room area as quickly as possible. He tapped his COM and asked Teyla and Ronon to join them in Rodney's lab. By the time, they arrived at the lab, Rodney was ranting.

"Sheppard, those people on the coalition are not going to like this, not one bit. They were going to maroon us on a planet for what they thought we did wrong before. How the hell are they going to react to this when we are supposed to be working for the good of the Pegasus coalition?"

Teyla and Ronon walked in at that moment and Teyla had heard enough to make her very uneasy. "Colonel, Rodney, why are you discussing the trial that the coalition put us through?"

Before Sheppard could explain, Rodney blurted out, "Because the IOA has decided that we are going to cut a deal for the naquadah with the Tegerans directly and leave the rest of the Pegasus galaxy out of it."

"Is this true, John? Would they really do that?"

"Not would they, Teyla, they are; the IOA has given Woolsey his instructions, negotiate with the Tegerans for the naquadah mineral rights for Earth. I have orders from Gen. Landry to follow the directive."

"Colonel, I am stunned. I do not know what to say; this goes against everything we have worked for all these years. We have the opportunity to bring the peoples of this galaxy together and to help them improve their lives with the threat of being culled gone. But we are going to betray them and take valuable resources for your world?"

"Teyla, I know, believe me I know. We are just as upset as you are." Sheppard dropped onto a stool next to the lab bench. "The problem is that the IOA has the final word. With Woolsey being IOA himself, I doubt he'll rock the boat and I have orders not to rock anything. I know Landry; he sent that order to remind me not to defy this."

"Sheppard, this sucks." Sheppard looked over at Ronon and shook his head.

"Couldn't have said it any better myself, buddy. But this is what we have to deal with first and then we'll have to deal with the consequences."

"Colonel, there will be consequences." Teyla said quietly.

"Before we get to the consequences," Sheppard replied, "we need to find out who those mysterious guys were in the assembly hall and determine if they are the reason that Woolsey and I have been summoned to Tegera. We may have more than one problem."

Rodney hadn't spoken since his initial outburst, "John, we can't let this happen. I want access to that naquadah as much as anyone but we need to find a way to make certain that all that ore doesn't go to Earth."

Sheppard rubbed his eyes and visibly seemed to shake off some of his tension. "Look, I believe that Woolsey will be fair; he's been through a lot since he came here, I don't think he believes that 'by the book' is always the best course anymore. I don't know, maybe there will be a way to negotiate a deal for Earth to get some of the ore directly and the rest go through the trade system the coalition is trying to establish. For all we know, the Tegerans may decide to withdraw their petition to join the coalition; if they do, then they can trade directly with us. Either way, the coalition is not going to be pleased about this or our hand in it."

"John, I hope you are correct about Mr. Woolsey. If Atlantis is to be what we have worked for and sacrificed so much for, we cannot afford to be seen as taking advantage of them when it suits us."

"I know, Teyla. I know." Sheppard stood up, running his hand through his unruly dark hair, "Look, it's getting late; we have to be at the mission briefing at 0800 hrs, mission commences at 0900 hrs. Bring your gear to the conference room; I have a feeling that Woolsey will want to go at 0900 hrs on the dot."

As they started to leave, Sheppard stopped them, "Wait," he paused, trying to choose his words, "I am not going to tell any of you that you shouldn't discuss the IOA's decision with Woolsey, you have every right to do so. I just think that we need to see how he is going to play this. I think we need to trust him."

Teyla smiled at Sheppard, "I believe trusting Mr. Woolsey is the right thing to do, colonel; goodnight, everyone."

As Teyla left the lab, Rodney sighed, "Why do we always seem to get into these things?"

Sheppard chuckled, "We've certainly had enough practice, haven't we?" He looked over at Ronon who nodded in agreement.

"I'm going to work out; then go to sleep. See you guys in the morning." With that, Ronon was off.

Rodney sighed again and sat down on the stool Sheppard had vacated, leaning his head in his hands. Sheppard eyed his teammate who still looked upset, "You know, Rodney, we've had worse problems. We'll get through this one, too."

"Always looking at the silver lining, aren't you? Wish I could be so confident."

Sheppard slapped Rodney on the back. "You don't get anywhere by thinking negatively, Rodney. Have to make the best of whatever hand your dealt." With those words of wisdom, Sheppard left.

Rodney stared at the door for a few minutes, "I never was good at cards."

_Balcony_

Sheppard had started toward his quarters but realized that he too restless to sleep just yet. He decided to head toward the control room to check-in with the Marines on night gate detail and see if anything was going on in Atlantis. He got off the transporter and headed down the corridor toward the control room, admitting to himself that he really came to see if Woolsey was around. He wanted to talk.

"Colonel, good evening; welcome to the zombie shift." Liang had just taken over from Amelia and was settling in at the gate console.

"Good evening, Liang; anything going on?"

"No sir, it's been quiet this evening. Captain Jacobs' team is the only team out and they made their scheduled call-in from P3X-734 on time. They were bedding down for the night, next call-in 0600 hrs. He reported that Dr. Beckett's med team would be done by mid-day tomorrow and they would be returning then."

"Thanks, Liang." He had noticed that Woolsey was in his office but he decided to act like he was there just checking on the security detail before he headed for his quarters.

Sheppard headed down the stairs to the gate room where he spent time talking with each of the Marines; night gate duty could get a bit boring but he knew that each one of them would be ready in a heartbeat if there was a threat to Atlantis. However, that didn't take the boredom out of a quiet night; he made of point of stopping by often hoping they would realize that their CO hadn't forgotten about them.

Heading back up the stairs to the control room, he wondered what he was going to say to Woolsey. Over the last many months, he and Woolsey had developed a mutual respect for each other. Sheppard knew that Woolsey wasn't a man of action, to make a quick decision and go was not a comfortable thing for the Atlantis director, yet he had seen Woolsey change since he came to Atlantis. The new Woolsey sometimes threw 'the book' out the window and made decisions on the run; life in the Pegasus galaxy will do that. He was hoping that Woolsey would use some of that newly found initiative on their current problem.

Woolsey wasn't in his office. Sheppard looked at Liang, about to ask him if he knew where Woolsey had gone when the gate tech pointed to the balcony; he saw Woolsey standing next to the railing. Nodding his thanks, he headed for the balcony door.

"Never gets old, does it." Sheppard had joined Woolsey on the railing.

Woolsey shook his head no, and they both stared quietly at the incredible night sky for a bit longer. The bright moonlight came from the two visible moons that surrounded New Lantia; shimmering on the relative calm of the ocean surrounding the city. The sky looked like midnight blue velvet with sparkling gems scattered across the expanse.

Woolsey spoke first, "Colonel, I suspect you have come to plead your case."

"I am not real certain why I wanted to talk to you; I don't think pleading my case is exactly what I had in mind, but now that you mentioned it."

"No need to bother, colonel, I have been pleading to myself for a while now."

Sheppard shifted his stance, trying to give himself a moment to absorb Woolsey's words.

"Rodney asked me a question just a little while ago, Mr. Woolsey; he wanted to know why we always seemed to get into these situations. I didn't have an answer for him; this is just another welcome to the Pegasus galaxy.

"I should have taken heed at that comment when you originally made it to me during the first few days I was here. Maybe I should have run for the gate at that moment."

Sheppard couldn't stifle a laugh, "The truth is none of us ran, we stayed here, we fought the galaxy's demons and a few of our own but we stayed. Not sure what that says about us but I know one thing, we have given a lot to this galaxy; we cannot afford to destroy what we've accomplished. We try to take that naquadah and we might as well pack up and head for Earth."

"You might be surprised at this, colonel, but I agree with you. Part of me is still connected to my bureaucratic roots but if this place and the people here have taught me anything, it is that circumstances do not occur by the proverbial book."

Sheppard remained quiet, waiting for Woolsey to continue.

Colonel Sheppard, I will follow the IOA's directive but I promise you this, I will not allow the pillage of naquadah from this galaxy."

"Well, you can count on one thing," Woolsey turned to look at Sheppard as the colonel replied. "We've got your back."

"I hope that is enough, colonel; this one is going to be tricky."

_Conference Room_

The mission briefing lasted about 45 minutes as Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard briefed the additional teams on the situation and their general plan, which was really a make-it-up as they go plan but Woolsey had nixed Sheppard calling it that. Lieutenant Isaacs spent some time going over charts of the topography of the region and the layout of the of the capital city and the buildings that his team had been inside during the first mission.

They had gathered in the gate room; everyone was finishing putting on their gear or checking their weapons. Sheppard noticed that Teyla was helping Woolsey into his TAC vest; he hadn't wanted to wear one but Sheppard had not given him a choice. In addition to Woolsey and Sheppard and Isaacs' teams, Major Lorne and Captain Waters and Lieutenant Stackhouse's teams were also going along. Sheppard wanted a team at the gate in the event they needed to make a quick exit and an extra few sets of eyes.

At precisely 0900 hrs, Sgt. Campbell dialed Tegera and the Atlantis contingent disappeared through the stargate.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three A Little Danger**

_Assembly Hall_

Tegera was sunny, a few clouds dotted the bright blue sky and the weather was very temperate. The gate was located on a large square near the center of Galaz and was about a five minutes walk from the Assembly Hall. Sheppard and his team took the lead along with Lt. Isaacs, Major Lorne was behind them accompanying Woolsey, and the rest of the teams followed with the exception of Captain Waters' team, who remained at the gate. They headed down the stone paved walkway passing businesses and shops of all types; Galaz was clearly one of the most advanced cities they had encountered in Pegasus. The city reminded Sheppard of Sateda, if the Wraith hadn't destroyed it, and wondered if Ronon was thinking the same thing.

"Very modern looking city, especially if you compare Galaz to other cities in this galaxy." Sheppard remarked.

Isaacs agreed, "Really very nice place, sir and it was never damaged by the Wraith like so many others were. They were very rarely culled; their location at the edge of the galaxy plus the fact that the gate is in town where no darts could access it, made it difficult for the Wraith. Apparently, they only culled when there was a hive in the vicinity; even then the cullings didn't take many."

Teyla remarked, "They were very fortunate."

Isaac's continued, "Yes, ma'am; one of the assembly member's aides told me that there was a network of tunnels that had been built many, many years ago near all of the major population areas with sub-tunnels that extended into the countryside. Hundreds of years ago, they had some kind of major civil war here and that was when they dug the first tunnels, as escape routes. They also used the old tunnels and new ones they dug to hide from the Wraith who for some reason couldn't detect them when they were hiding there. He said there were outposts scattered around but he didn't have time to explain what they were."

"Sheppard," Ronon was walking behind him and he spoke very low, "we're being watched."

"Yeah, I caught that." Sheppard didn't look around at Ronon.

"They're wearing brown." Ronon added and Sheppard just nodded. They continued toward the hall in silence.

About half-way to the hall, they came across several men walking toward them. Isaacs identified them as two of the assembly members and a few Tegeran security guards. One of the assembly members spoke, "Lieutenant Isaacs, greetings; we welcome you back to Tegera and I see you have brought others that we have not met before."

Isaacs stepped forward, "Bronagh, greetings to you. Yes, I have brought both Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard as the governor requested." Bronagh nodded to both men and then requested that they follow him to the assembly hall.

As they turned a corner and the Assembly Hall came into view, Sheppard looked at Isaacs and could see the uneasiness in the Marine's eyes. For some reason, Sheppard always thought of a Marine recruitment poster when he looked at the muscular Isaacs with his intense dark blue eyes and military haircut so short it was hard to tell the color of his hair; the quintessential Marine. Isaacs moved closer to the colonel and quietly spoke, "Colonel, the townspeople are missing, there is something wrong. When we were here before, there were people everywhere around the hall, food and goods vendors on the streets, it was crowded, sir,"

Sheppard kept his voice low, "No less than what we were expecting, drop back and let Lorne know, keep alert." Isaacs nodded and slowed his pace to speak to Lorne.

They reached the Assembly Hall, a structure that looked similar to government buildings on earth. The building was large, made of pale beige stone, with large windows covered by metal shutters, and was four stories high. Bronagh led them through an ornate metal gate into a large open vestibule; the walls covered in deep red polished stone; the floor of the open patio covered in stone of a deep grayish-purple color. There was a large fountain located in the center and numerous plants in large stone vessels decorating the area.

McKay sniped, "Well, Mr. Woolsey, here's proof that they have some experience in mining minerals on this planet, so much for your theory that no one in Pegasus could refine naquadah. The Tegerans have electricity from water turbines, motorized vehicles, mining ability, and apparently the tools to precision cut and polish these stones. Their technology is fairly advanced; they could be taught to refine ore."

Sheppard turned toward Rodney and with a single look he let the scientist know to shut up. McKay made a face back, which Sheppard ignored. Sheppard then addressed Major Lorne.

"Lorne, I want you, your team, and Isaacs' team to stay here, Isaacs is with us; post some people outside of this courtyard. I need you out here if anything goes down. We'll keep to the signals we discussed." Sheppard was concerned about what they were walking into and he felt that Lorne would be in better position to act from outside the main hall. Two Tegeran guards opened the tall, ornately carved wooden doors and the Atlantians entered the main hall.

The hall was large, the walls and floors were made of the same stone as the vestibule; the ceiling was at least three stories tall with large round metal chandeliers dropping several feet from the ceiling, light coming from the lamps attached to them. Sheppard could tell from the expressions of the others that he was not the only one impressed with the workmanship.

There was an elevated dais at the front of the hall where a few people were sitting; Isaacs identified one of them as the governor. To his left, Sheppard could see the alcove where the mystery men had been standing but there was no one there at the moment. To his right, a staircase hugged the wall terminating at a second level opening where a corridor led away from the hall. The governor rose as they approached.

"Lieutenant Isaacs, welcome, and I see you have brought some friends with you." The governor stepped down from the dais and walked toward the visitors. He was a small, rotund man with graying hair and was dressed in a long tunic made from a finely woven gray fabric and black pants. Sheppard noted that the clothing of the other assembly members present was similar although varied in color.

Lt. Isaacs bowed to the governor, "Governor Lalrahn, I would like to introduce Mr. Richard Woolsey, Director of the Atlantis Expedition and this is Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, military commander of Atlantis. This is Teyla Emmagan and Ronon Dex."

Mr. Woolsey walked up to the governor, bowed per protocol with Sheppard standing behind him doing the same, then the director spoke, "Governor Lalrahn, it is an honor to visit your world. The colonel and I are looking forward to our discussions regarding your petition for admittance to the Pegasus coalition. We also look forward to discussing the discovery of naquadah ore made by one of our scientists while surveying your planet."

"We are pleased to have you and the colonel with us and we look forward to our discussions as well. Please come with me, we felt that our initial meeting should be in a more suitable and less open location, so we will be meeting in my office." The governor gestured toward the staircase.

As they all began to follow the governor, he turned back to Woolsey, "I am sorry, Mr. Woolsey but there is only room for you and Colonel Sheppard in my office, it is quite small. The rest of your party will have to wait here."

Ronon started to protest but Sheppard shook his head and Ronon remained quiet; however, his disapproval of the two men going alone was obvious. Sheppard was fairly certain it wasn't in their best interest to go without the team, but they needed to find out what was really happening on Tegera. He had already seen the look in the governor's eyes; the man was frightened.

"Not a problem, governor, the rest of our team can wait here for us." Sheppard was looking closely at the governor who would not meet his gaze. With a look back at Ronon and Teyla, Sheppard followed Woolsey as they climbed the stairs.

Ronon whispered to Teyla, "I don't like this."

Teyla did not take her eyes off of Woolsey and the colonel until they reached the top of the stairs and disappeared into the corridor, "I don't like this either, Ronon."

_Governor's Office_

Woolsey and Sheppard were led down a long wide hallway and were almost at the end when the governor stopped, "We're here." As the governor reached for the door handle, Sheppard noticed that his hands were shaking.

Sheppard gently grabbed the governor's wrist, "Sir, is there anything that you would like to tell us?"

Lalrahn still had the same fearful look in his eye but he answered, "No, of course not, colonel. Let's go in so that we can talk." With that Sheppard let go of the governor's hand and waited as he opened the door. Woolsey followed the governor inside and Sheppard entered last.

As the door closed behind him, Sheppard felt strong hands grab him from behind and then he saw another man dressed in brown grab Woolsey. The governor had retreated behind his desk; he was very pale and trembling.

While Sheppard struggled to get free, another one of the "mystery men" slipped his 9-mil from his holster and unclipped the P-90 from his vest. Sheppard kicked out at the man in front of him but only got a hard punch in his abdomen for his efforts. He doubled over from the blow and fell, rolling against the governor's desk. As he tried to catch his breath, he could hear Woolsey demand to know what was going on.

"So you would like to know what is going on, Mr. Woolsey. I will explain it all to you in good time." A man with a deep voice spoke; after addressing Woolsey, he walked over to Sheppard and kicked the colonel in his left side. "Get him up; I want to see his face."

The man holding Sheppard roughly pulled him up from the floor and tied his hands behind his back. When he finished, he spun Sheppard around to face their leader. Sheppard recognized him immediately, he was one of Genii who was with Kolya the day Sheppard killed him.

"I would say nice to see you again but then I would be lying." Sheppard spoke in a low, hoarse voice, his breathing still not back to normal.

"Well, well, well, the great Colonel Sheppard; you have been a nuisance for far too long. I cannot tell you how happy I was when we arrived on Tegera to hear that people from Atlantis were visiting this fair planet as representatives of the coalition. We had only come here to recruit members for the revolution against Pegasus unity. Now, this is my opportunity to revenge the death of my mentor. You will pay for Kolya's death, colonel; but not right away, I think it will take you a long time to die."

"That's kind of you: I wouldn't want to die really quickly, maybe 40 or 50 years from now would be good." Sheppard attempted a smug grin but wasn't very successful.

"Always the funny man, aren't you, colonel. Somehow I don't think that you'll be so funny for long."

Sheppard was about to reply with another funny remark when the Genii hit him in the face. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was the smile on his captor's face.

_Assembly Hall_

Ronon was pacing, his anger at not being with Sheppard and Woolsey evident with every heavy step he took; Lt. Isaacs was standing ramrod straight, convinced that Woolsey and his CO were in danger and feeling helpless that he could do nothing at the moment. McKay was tapping nervously on his tablet, trying to past the time working. Sitting quietly next to Rodney on one of the pews near the center of the hall, Teyla was trying to clear her mind to be ready to take action if necessary. However, Ronon's pacing was hindering her efforts to think clearly.

"Ronon, please sit down, pacing back and forth will not help."

"It's helping me," was his only retort.

"Please Ronon, come sit down next to me; I need to talk to you, Rodney and Lt. Isaacs. I have an idea on how to gain some information."

Ronon stopped and then reluctantly sat down next to Teyla; the lieutenant was already standing close to her. "What's on your mind?" Ronon asked.

"I have been watching the assembly members, they are nervous. A few minutes ago another man joined them and they seemed even more nervous after his arrival. I believe they know what is going on. I am going to try to get one of them to talk to me; I think I will speak to the younger one who is sitting off to the side. Perhaps he will tell me something. Please stay here, gentlemen." Teyla rose and walked toward the young Tegeran.

"She made a good choice. That guy hasn't taken his eyes off of Teyla since we arrived. If any of these people would talk to her, I think he would." Isaacs remarked.

"Let's hope so." Ronon stood up and began to pace once more, though not with the same intensity as before.

McKay smiled, "Beauty, brains, and good in a fight; that's our Teyla."

"Just like me, right McKay?" Ronon was looking down at the scientist.

"Well, the good in a fight part," McKay answered back. Ronon's hand went to his blaster and McKay slid down the pew a couple of feet to get away from the Satedan. Ronon turned toward Isaacs and grinned; Isaacs fought back a smile, he didn't want to make Dr. McKay angry.

Teyla smiled broadly as she approached the young assemblyman. He rose in response to her greeting; Teyla noted that he was nearly as tall as Ronon but there the resemblance ended. This young man was thin with longish blond hair and gray eyes; he looked more a poet or teacher than a warrior. "Hello, I am Teyla Emmagan; I have just been admiring this beautiful hall, it is remarkable that it was not destroyed during the Wraith cullings."

"Teyla, I am Persim Ravil, it is nice to meet you." He smile warmly at Teyla, then paused and looked around the hall, "Yes, it is beautiful. We were never sure why the Wraith did not destroy the city or the other towns and villages. The Wraith would come out the sky in their arrow shaped ships, sweeping down over the towns and villages to cull but they never found many to harvest. Our citizens hid in tunnels that extend from the city into the countryside and for some reason the Wraith could not detect the people hiding in the tunnels. Eventually, the cullings became less frequent and we were fortunate to be spared."

"You are most fortunate, I am Athosian and a great many of my people were culled."

"This galaxy has suffered from the reign of the Wraith. Now that the Wraith no longer feed on humans, perhaps we will see a time of prosperity when we can grow without fear."

"That is the hope of all of us, Persim. That prosperity will once again come to the people of this galaxy."

He looked at Teyla, his face betraying his emotion, "We would not be free of the Wraith if it were not for the Atlantians. We owe them a great deal." He trembled slightly.

Teyla knew she must risk asking him what was happening, "Persim, you must help us. We believe that Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard may be in great danger. Are they?"

"Teyla, I can't…," Persim looked toward the ceiling and then looked back at Teyla, when he spoke his voice was much lower. "Yes, they are; your friends are in grave danger. You should have never returned here. There is much evil on Tegera this day." His eyes reflected fear and Teyla could see he was struggling with being truthful with her. Yet Teyla could sense strength in Persim; a strength that was empowering him to tell Teyla the truth of what was happening on Tegera.

"What kind of danger and from whom?" Teyla glanced at Ronon and Isaacs and they both, recognizing the uneasy look on her face, tightened their grip on their weapons.

"If they find out I have told you, many will die. They are holding our families so that we would deliver the colonel and the leader of Atlantis to them. They have told us that if we try to interfere with their plans they will kill our families."

"Please, Persim, I promise that we will help you to free them. You must tell me, who is behind this and what are they planning."

He rose from his chair and motioned for her to follow him, speaking louder as if he wanted the people on the dais to know why he was walking with Teyla. "Come with me, if you would like to know more about the history of Tegera, you must see the painting that is hung here. It details our most famous battle from the dark times when there were two warring factions on the planet."

The painting was very large and was hung on the on the right side of the Assembly Hall near the back; Persim was pointing to the painting as if he were explaining the battle that was portrayed. Instead of discussing the painting, he was giving Teyla details of the mystery men, "They came by the Ancestral portal the day before Lt. Isaacs and his team came to do the survey. They call themselves the Pegasus Rebellion and they are opposed to the coalition. Their leader spent much time before the assembly, telling us that the people of the galaxy had lived for far too long under the influence of the Wraith. He said that if we joined the coalition, we would just be trading one master for another. There were many of us who doubted their story."

"Do you know who they are, where they are from, and why they wanted the colonel and Woolsey?"

"No, I do not know who they are, their leader calls himself Ferish but I do not know where he is from; I do not think they all come from the same planet."

"Did you say 'all'; are there more than the five that Lt. Isaacs saw hiding here in the hall yesterday? Persim, how many are there?" Teyla felt a cold shiver run down her back, she got the impression from the way Persim said 'all' that there may be more of these men than they had imagined.

"There were eight of them at first; but when he heard that people from Atlantis were coming to survey for the coalition, Ferish sent two of his men to the gate; soon nearly twenty more of Ferish's rebels arrived through the gate. While Lt. Isaacs and his team were beginning the survey, the rebels began to round up our family members and bring them to the assembly dining hall; where they are being held now along with the citizens who were in the hall yesterday."

"When did you become aware that they had taken your families?"

"Ferish and one of his men dressed as assembly members and were on the dais when Lt. Isaacs informed the assembly about the discovery of this naquadah; it was Ferish who told the governor to request a recess to discuss the find. During the recess, he had the citizens who were in the hall taken away and he informed us that he had our families and threatened to kill them if we did not demand the colonel and the leader of Atlantis to come to Tegera.

"Did Ferish or any of them mention why they wanted our friends?"

"No, I do not know why they were so adamant to get them here. Ferish said something about wanting the leaders of Atlantis to pay; he seemed especially interested in Colonel Sheppard."

"Thank you, Persim. I know this is difficult but I promise you, we will help you free your people and I hope you will help us. Let us return to the front where I will thank you for the history lesson; then I must speak to my companions." Teyla smiled and took Persim by the arm and they walked toward the front.

As Teyla returned to the pew near the center of the hall where Rodney, Ronon, and Isaacs waited for her, her mind was searching for any thoughts as to who could be behind this. She quickly filled in her companions and Lt. Isaacs contacted Lorne, who requested that Isaacs step outside to discuss the information. As Isaac's left the hall, no one noticed that an assemblyman, who had just joined the others, was talking into a small radio attached to his wrist, his eyes never leaving Teyla.


	4. Chapter 4

**A Little Distress**

_Farmhouse_

Richard Woolsey was scared. Their captors had moved them in a transport from the assembly hall shortly after their leader, Ferish, had knocked Sheppard out. Woolsey thought they were at a farmhouse some distance from Galaz; they had traveled for nearly an hour. The aroma of hay and farm animals seemed to hang in the air reminding him of trips to farm country to visit an uncle when he was a child; even then, he had preferred the city.

One of their captors, Mosston, seemed to be in charge; he was a large man, more muscle than fat with a dark, scraggly beard and unkempt hair. He got out of the front of the transport and began issuing orders. "Fracie, you and Pava take that one away," he was pointing to the still unconscious Sheppard. "I'll take this one inside."

Woolsey was very concerned about Sheppard; the colonel had yet to wake up. Ferish had punched him very brutally in the face, which had knocked him unconscious, and then they had roughly tossed Sheppard into the transport. Woolsey was certain that he would remember the sound Sheppard's head made when it hit the transport's metal bed for the rest of his life.

Mosston grabbed Woolsey's tied hands and pushed him toward the door of the farmhouse. He nearly fell but the big man caught him and laughed, "Can't have you get hurt yet. Ferish wouldn't like it if you hurt yourself; he wants us to hurt you."

Once through the front door, Woolsey found himself in what he thought must be the parlor. These thugs had moved all the furniture against the walls; leaving only a wooden chair in the center of the room, a chair which already had ropes tied to it. Woolsey was shaking but he tried very hard to remain in control; he was fearful of what he suspected was going to happen next. Mosston pulled him over to the chair and forced him to sit and immediately began wrapping the ropes around Woolsey's legs as Pava and Fracie appeared through a doorway. Mosston left Pava to finish tying his legs; he and Fracie left the room.

"Who are you people? What do you want with us?" Woolsey used his most commanding voice but it was lost on Pava; he simply ignored the Atlantis director as he continued to secure him to the chair.

"I demand to know who you are." Woolsey insisted but Pava continued to ignore him. The slightly built rebel with pale skin and hair and watery blue eyes had finished tying his legs to the chair and now had untied his hands and was binding his arms around the chair back.

At that moment, Mosston and Fracie walked back into the room. Woolsey took a deep breath and started asking questions once more.

"Are you in charge here?" looking at Mosston. "I demand to know what you have done with Colonel Sheppard. Where have you taken him?"

Mosston walked up to the chair and stared down at Woolsey; then he hit Woolsey in the jaw. Woolsey's head snapped back, his glasses flew off his face, and blood began to drip from the corner of his mouth, slowly trickling down his chin. He took a tentative breath and then spoke, "I asked you a question, what did you do with Colonel Sheppard?"

Mosston answered with another blow to Woolsey's head which was then followed by hits to his face and upper body by Fracie and Pava. For nearly ten minutes, the three men alternated striking Woolsey in the head and abdomen, pausing for a brief time in between blows; then his arms and legs were untied and he fell in the floor.

Woolsey tried to breath through the pain; his face, right side and right shoulder had suffered most the damage. Someone long ago taught him breathing exercises to deal with pain and he tried to do them but it wasn't helping. Woolsey was certain that they were not hitting him as hard as they could but he wasn't sure if he could take any harsher punishment. He knew one thing; he wasn't going to give up. If Sheppard and the others had taught him anything, it was to never give up.

Lying on the floor, Woolsey started asking questions again, his voice rough and breathy, "I asked you earlier and I will ask you again, what do you want from us, and where is Colonel Sheppard?"

His answer came by boot, as he received a kick in his left side from one of the three men. Woolsey watched as Pava picked up a slender wooden rod and raised it above his head. Pava swung the rod down until it connected with his right leg; he repeated the action over and over striking different parts of his body. After a few minutes had passed, Mosston called a halt to the beating. Woolsey curled up on the floor, trying to relieve the pain from the blows.

"That's enough. I believe our guest has enjoyed our hospitality for an adequate amount of time, for now. Take him to the cellar and keep an eye on the colonel; when he wakes up, I want him brought to me. We need to make certain that the colonel has as much fun as his friend here."

Fracie approached him; the tall, muscular dark skinned man reached down and grabbed his arm and pulled the director to his knees. "Hey, you better give me some help here or I'll leave you here to Mosston's mercy." Woolsey struggled up, his legs felt like rubber, and he was having difficulty breathing. He was embarrassed that he needed to lean on Fracie to walk but he was determine to go wherever they were taking him by walking as much on his own as he could.

_Assembly Hall_

They had run out of patience. Rodney had begun to pace, Ronon had given up pacing and was lying on a pew. Teyla was staring at the dais; about twenty minutes after she had spoken with Persim, all of the assembly members had left the hall and she wondered why. They were now alone.

Lt. Isaacs had gone outside to confer with Major Lorne but he had returned to wait with the colonel's team. "Ma'am, Major Lorne is running out of patience and feels that we need to insist that we be allowed to speak to Colonel Sheppard. It will soon be three hours since they went to the governor's office; the major wants to go at three hours."

"I agree, lieutenant; this has gone on for far too long." Teyla stood up, her resolve evident on her face.

Rodney stopped pacing, "Do you think that's wise? I mean, we know that this situation is tricky because of what the IOA wants us to do. Maybe it's taking time to work this out?"

"McKay, I say we go." Ronon was standing, hand on his blaster.

"Well, you would, wouldn't you? Just blast your way in there and save the day; well, that might not be the best thing to do."

Teyla, as always the mediator, intervened, "Rodney, Ronon, I believe that the major is right; we must find out what is happening. We already suspect that the colonel and Mr. Woolsey may be in danger. I fear we have not acted quickly enough."

She turned to Lt. Isaacs, "Lieutenant, please inform Major Lorne that at three hours, we will go to the governors office and check on our people. If he hasn't heard from us within thirty minutes from that time, further action is at his discretion."

"Understood, ma'am," Isaacs left the hall to update the major.

_Governor's Office_

Once they decided a course of action, they only had a short time to wait. Teyla sent Isaacs and Ronon to see if they could locate one of the assembly members but they were unable to find anyone. At the three hour mark, Lt. Isaacs informed the major by COM that they were heading upstairs to the office.

Isaacs went up the stairs first with Teyla and Rodney behind him and Ronon watching their backs. As they entered the hallway, they saw two Tegeran guards outside a door.

"That must be the office, let's go." Teyla took the lead.

They approached the guards cautiously but both guards smiled and greeted Teyla.

"Good day, we would like to speak to either Colonel Sheppard or Mr. Woolsey; they are meeting with the governor." Teyla requested.

"Just a moment, ma'am, let me check before I let you enter." One of the guards opened the door and went inside the office.

After just a few seconds, he came back into the hallway. "Certainly, ma'am, you and your companions can go right in."

As the guard opened the door, Teyla heard Rodney whisper, "Well, that was easy."

They entered the office and quickly realized that things were never easy; there was no Colonel Sheppard or Mr. Woolsey or governor. Teyla recognized the gray haired man sitting behind the desk immediately. He had been one of Kolya's henchmen; she remembered him from the planet where the colonel had killed Kolya.

The two 'Tegeran' guards in the hallway overpowered Isaacs and relieved him of his weapons. Ronon made a move toward them, his gun raised when Ferish spoke.

"Go ahead and try but I assure you, your man will be dead before you get a shot off."

One guard was holding a Genii pistol against Isaacs' head and Ronon knew the man behind the desk wasn't kidding. Reluctantly, he dropped his gun; he was enraged but a look from Teyla calmed him down for the moment.

"Well, I see that the colonel's big bodyguard listens well. You just saved that man's life, for now at least." He turned to the four guards in the room, "Please take their weapons."

As the guards complied, Ferish turned his attention back to the Atlantians. "Where are my manners, please sit." He laughed as none of his captives moved. "Well, have it your way. I recognize you, Teyla Emmagan and of course, the great Dr. McKay. And I remember your large friend from the day that your colonel killed Kolya. I am Ferish Bernin; I was Kolya's second in command."

Rodney demanded, "Where are Colonel Sheppard and Mr. Woolsey? What have you done with them?"

"Oh, I assure you they are quite safe and secure; maybe not exactly healthy, I suspect they have some bruises or broken bones by now." Ferish leaned back in the governor's chair and waited for Rodney to react.

However, it was Ronon who spoke, his voice deep and menacing, "You kill them and you are a dead man."

"Brave words; it will be interesting to see if you can carry them out. For I fully intend on killing them. The colonel will pay for his crime but only after he has suffered for all of the Genii deaths he is responsible for and that could take some time." He paused, "As for your Mr. Woolsey, he's just a victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time; he will have to pay for the humiliation Dr. Weir gave my commander. It is a shame that Dr. Weir is no longer with us though; I escorted her to meet with the Genii leaders when she came for the nuclear bombs. Really liked blindfolding her; she was quite the tasty little morsel. I would have loved to have her around to play with for awhile before I killed her as well."

Ronon utter a low growl and lunged at Ferish. A guard reacted quickly and hit Ronon in the head with the butt of his gun; the Satedan dropped to the floor unconscious. Teyla started to go to him when one of the guards grabbed her.

Ferish got up and came from behind the desk to Teyla; he ran his hand down her cheek. "What I have heard about this great team from Atlantis is obviously true. You certainly do stand up for each other. It is also true, little one, that you are very beautiful; quite the tasty little morsel yourself." He continued sliding his hand along her throat and onto her chest. "If I have time, we just might become better acquainted since Dr. Weir isn't available. I just might save killing you for last."

"You keep your hands off of her!" Rodney made a move toward Ferish but a guard restrained him.

"Ah, the gallant gentleman, Dr. McKay; be careful doctor, I have no quarrel with you. However, if you give me trouble, things could change. Kolya only wanted you for that brain of yours; perhaps that is all I will take with me when I leave." He watched as Rodney paled at his words.

Turning to one of the guards, Ferish told him, "Take them to the detention center and I want them kept in the same cell." With a sinister smile, he looked at Rodney and Teyla, "If they are all together they will know when one of them is taken away for a sample of our hospitality and when we bring our guest back a little worse for wear, they can console each other." Turning back to the guards, "Post guards on them; I don't trust them, even locked in a cell."

Two of the guards lifted Ronon off the floor and began to drag him away. The other guards pushed Teyla, Rodney and Isaacs from the room. Teyla looked back as she was pushed through the door; Ferish had a very self-satisfied look on his face. At that moment, Teyla became very afraid for Sheppard and Woolsey.

_Cellar_

Richard Woolsey was hurting and he was cold; he was leaning against a stone wall in the cellar of the farmhouse. Fracie had dumped him there after helping him down the stairs. The only consolation to the wicked environment was that he now knew where they were keeping Sheppard. The colonel was laying a couple of feet away from him on the cellar floor, still unconscious but breathing fairly evenly.

He was concerned that the colonel was in shock and he crawled around the cellar looking for something to cover Sheppard with to keep him warm. The large roughly woven sacks, most likely used for grain storage, he found should provide some warmth; he dragged a stack of them over to the colonel. He placed a couple of the sacks under Sheppard's head and then used the rest to cover him, sliding some under him as best he could to keep the colonel off the cold floor. He found a crate that he used to elevate Sheppard's feet and then waited, hoping the colonel would wake up.

Woolsey tried to sleep but the muscle spasms from the beating he took were so painful that he couldn't relax. He leaned his head back and tried to make sense of what was happening to them but then he realized that this kind of violence never made sense. He looked over at his second in command; this man took so much abuse for Atlantis and yet he never complained, never walked away from whatever faced them.

The naysayers in the IOA and Air Force who did not want Sheppard to be given military command of Atlantis had almost won until Dr. Elizabeth Weir had made it plain to General Landry that she would not tolerate anyone but Sheppard in that role. He had been one of the naysayers; he also knew that his own 'by the book' mentality clouded his judgment. Even though he had read the mission reports that documented over and over Sheppard's bravery and ingenuity in the face of danger; he had chosen to focus on the then major's lack of respect for the chain of command.

How foolish he had been for believing that this man was not up to the job of command of the military on Atlantis. At this point, he wasn't certain that anyone else could have been as successful in Atlantis as Sheppard had proven to be. That the 'black mark' on Sheppard's record would never allow him to gain the respect of the men and women under his command had been repeated and repeated among the brass as a reason to keep Sheppard from the Atlantis military leadership position.

Woolsey never bothered to find out what that black mark was until he assumed command of the Atlantis base. Now that he knew what had happened he scoffed at the foolishness of the charge. He had seen the colonel in action and realized the brass had it wrong; they should have known that when the colonel disobeyed an order, it was usually because the order was wrong. Not that he would ever allow the colonel to know he felt that way. As for the respect of Sheppard's command, Woolsey knew there wasn't a single man or woman on Atlantis, military or scientist, who would not do everything they could to protect this man as he would protect them.

A rescue mission would be launched, perhaps one was already underway; they did not leave anyone behind. Keeping the injured colonel alive until they were rescued now fell to him and he knew that the people on Atlantis would expect him to do just that.

Woolsey wasn't certain how much time had passed; he had dozed a bit but he came alert when he heard a moan from the still form lying next to him. He crawled across the short space between them.

"Colonel, colonel, can you hear me?" He gently shook the colonel's shoulder.

"Woolsey…is…that you?" Sheppard's voice was weak and raspy but he was awake; Woolsey thought that was at least something.

'Yes, colonel, it's me. I know this is a foolish question but how are you feeling?"

Sheppard raised his head but when the waves of dizziness hit him, he thought better of it.

"Like I…took on Ronon…a…few times too many." He breathed out and tried to take a lung full of oxygen in but didn't quite get a full breath.

"You…ok?" He asked Woolsey.

Woosley took a quick glance up the narrow stairs to the first floor. When he spoke, he realize he didn't sound much better than Sheppard, "I'm alright. Listen to me, colonel, they are waiting for you to wake up before they take you upstairs for a little chat. You need to continue to act like you are unconscious."

"Oh…a date with a baseball bat, huh?" Sheppard tried to laugh but coughed instead.

"Yes, colonel, something like that. It would be better if you didn't have to go through that with your current injuries."

"Yeah…I can agree with you on that."

"Just rest, colonel, and play dea…play unconscious."

"I like the…second one better…Woolsey. Did you get…a baseball bat of…your own?"

"Yes, colonel, autographed and everything."

"Welcome, to…the Pegasus galaxy, Mr. Woolsey." With that last comment, Sheppard drifted off to sleep.

_Detention_

Teyla was pacing; she decided that perhaps Ronon and Rodney were on to something, pacing was helping keep her anger at bay.

Ronon had awakened about fifteen minutes before, already sporting a puffy, black eye and a pretty bad headache. He had watched her for a bit and then decided to say something, "Teyla, you told me to stop pacing, so stop pacing."

"No, it helps," but she sat down on the bench beside him anyway. "We should have gone after John and Mr. Woolsey sooner. We should have certainly not allowed them to go that office unaccompanied." She leaned back against the cell wall and closed her eyes willing herself to calm down.

Rodney was standing at the metal bars that enclosed them in the cell. He could just see the guards that Ferish had posted to watch them standing down further down the corridor. The detention center was part of the Assembly Hall; Rodney had noticed signs that pointed to various government offices as they had been led to the cell. He continued to look out into the corridor as he asked no one in particular, "What do you think Lorne is doing? Maybe he got word to Captain Waters so that we can get some help from Atlantis?"

Isaacs, who was leaning against the back wall of the cell, replied, "Dr. McKay, I tapped my COM three times just after they took my weapon; that was the signal the colonel devised for us to inform each other if things went sour. I can only hope the major received it and got out of the area before these people got to them."

"You know, I guess the colonel couldn't get a signal off to us quickly enough when Ferish caught them. If we had known from the beginning they wouldn't have had such a head start." Isaacs looked down at the floor, dejected that they hadn't gotten to the colonel and Woolsey's aid quicker.

Teyla felt for the lieutenant, she was feeling the same way herself. "We have to assume that Lorne and the others may have been caught and could already be here in the detention hall. We have to figure out a way to get out of here because we may have more people in jeopardy than we realize." As she spoke, Ronon got up and walked over to the bars where Rodney was standing.

"So, McKay, how do we get out of here?" Rodney looked up at his tall companion and shook his head.

"I've got nothing; I can't see a way out." Rodney walked over to one of the benches in the large cell and plopped down, dejected. "We need Sheppard."

Teyla moved over to where Rodney was sitting, "Rodney, we do not have Colonel Sheppard; we must get out of this on our own. Many times you have been the one to find a way for us to escape; I have faith that you can do that again."

Rodney leaned back against the wall, "Just let me think."

_Farmhouse_

Woolsey was somewhere between sleep and awareness; he thought he could hear footsteps and he struggled to wake up completely. He checked on the colonel who seemed to still be asleep. Feigning his own sleep, he waited to see who was coming while he wondered what was next.

Mosston and Pava came entered the cellar and walked directly to the colonel. Mosston spoke, "Well, look here; looks like the little guy's been playing nursemaid. Well, he's going get some practice after we get done with this one."

Mosston pulled the sacks off of the colonel and checked to see if he was awake, "He's still out; come on, help me pick him up. We'll shoot him up with stimulants and get him awake; Ferish wants these guys to remember every punch up until their last. Besides, Ferish could arrive at anytime and he won't be happy if pretty boy here isn't marked up."

Woolsey could hear the men grunt as the picked the colonel up and Pava complained, "For a skinny looking guy, he weighs a ton, must be all muscle."

They were about to approach the stairs when Woolsey decided he had to do something, "Hey, where are you bastards taking him?"

Mosston turned, "You need to shut up or I'll give you a little taste of what we're going to do you next time."

"Why are doing this, what have we ever done to you?" Woolsey was struggling to get up.

Mosston walked over to him, "To be honest, I don't really have any idea who you are, but when Ferish tells us to make you hurt, we do it."

Woolsey was almost on his feet when Mosston backhanded him, catching him across the temple and knocking him to the floor. Mosston rejoined Pava and they continued up the stairs struggling with Sheppard. Woolsey tried to get up but he didn't have the strength; he dropped his head back to the floor, fear for what they were going to do to Sheppard consuming his thoughts.


	5. Chapter 5

**A Little Disruption**

_Detention Hall_

"I've got it." Rodney had been quiet for so long that when he spoke, his cellmates were startled.

"Got what, McKay?" Ronon got up and went over to the scientist.

"I think I know how to get us out of here. We just have to distract the guards."

Teyla smiled, "Rodney, the guards left in a hurry about ten minutes ago. Did you not hear them?"

"What…no, I didn't, that's good. I just need to get to the lock."

"Dr. McKay, the lock is a combination lock, how are you going to figure out the numbers? There have to be a lot of possible combinations." Isaacs was getting interested, he was getting as antsy as Ronon was to get moving.

"Yes, there are but I have a feeling that these combinations are pretty simple. This is a prison and there will be lots of cells and lots of guards. Well, maybe used to be a lot of cells and a lot of guards; anyway, in order to get into the cells quickly, they aren't going to commit a lot of different numbers to the combinations, they need to be systematic. So, we came up two flights of stairs from the governors office, across that enclosed bridge, and then down a level. Therefore, we should be on level three. I saw a number over the entryway to this wing of cells, that number was 12, now I just have to figure out how many the cells per wing and how they are numbered and I think I can open the door."

Isaacs spoke, "Dr. McKay, there are a total of 20 cells on this wing; we are in cell number eight on this side."

McKay looked surprised, "Good observations, lieutenant. You military types don't miss much, do you?"

"No, sir, we don't; always need to have tactical advantage."

"OK, OK, this might work. Just give me a couple of minutes to figure out what numbers I need to try." Rodney walked to the cell door and then looked back at the others.

"What did you say happened to the guards?"

Isaacs replied, "Another one of the rebels showed up and yelled for them to come with him. We're hoping that perhaps Atlantis might have sent troops; regardless, something is up and they have left us unguarded, locked up, but unguarded."

"Lieutenant, do you know what Major Lorne's plans were when either got your signal or if he did not hear from us?" Teyla had moved to stand next to Rodney.

"Ma'am, he had arranged a signal with Captain Waters that if his team was going to enter the hall, the captain was to contact Atlantis and have Major Teldy bring a rescue team. Colonel Sheppard and Major Lorne had planned these contingencies before we left Atlantis."

Ronon asked, "So there should be some reinforcements coming?"

"Hope so, sir. However, we walked into a trap and I am concerned that these rebels have been a step ahead of us all along. I can only hope that the major was able to contact Captain Waters but I am fearful that the major's team may have been compromised."

Ronon grabbed the lieutenant's shoulder, "You've done well, Isaacs; the colonel will be very proud of you."

The lieutenant was embarrassed; praise from Ronon Dex was rare and to include the colonel in that praise was even more embarrassing. Most of the military contingent and probably the entire scientist department were a bit afraid of the big Satendan but they all respected him and were in awe of his prowess. He wondered if Ronon was truly aware of how the Atlantis personnel really felt about him. The lieutenant managed an awkward, "Thank you, sir."

Rodney interrupted by snapping his fingers, "OK, I think I have all the possible combinations figured out, let's try this. Someone keep a lookout, in case anyone comes down the hall."

Teyla and Isaacs took up positions on either side of Rodney but they really couldn't see down the corridor very far. Ronon stood behind the scientist, ready to pull him out of harm's way.

Rodney slipped his hands through the bars and grabbed the lock, twisting it toward him as much as he could; Rodney began to work the combinations. Minutes past as his companions heard various comments as his number sequences failed, then Rodney uttered a cry of success.

"Yes!" The scientist pulled the lock apart and started to push the door open when Isaacs stopped him.

"No, Dr. McKay, let me go first. There could be someone in the corridor we can't see." Isaacs gently moved McKay out of the way.

"Oh, yeah, sure, good thinking, lieutenant," Rodney backed away from the cell door a bit more. Teyla smiled as she heard him say under his breath, "Damn military heroes, always have to protect us, just like Sheppard."

Isaacs cautiously opened the door and looked out into the corridor, seeing that the way was clear, he motioned for the others to follow him.

_Farmhouse_

Sheppard woke with a start; it took him a few seconds to adjust to the bright light to try and see where he was. He tried to move but he realized that he was tied to a chair and could only move his head. As his vision cleared, he saw there were three men in the room with him and they didn't look very friendly.

"So, you…guys ready to…let me go. I'll…get my buddy and we'll be outta here before…you know it." That comment from Sheppard earned him the first blow; a fist to his jaw so hard that it knocked his chair on its side.

"Pick him up." Mosston told his companions.

Sheppard was groggy as they up righted him and he was having difficulty focusing, not to mention that his jaw hurt like a son-of-a-bitch.

"So, colonel, I understand that our commander, Ferish Bernin is not very fond of you. I actually feel sorry for you because Ferish is not a very nice man and I think he has some really nasty things in store for you once he arrives. He just wants us to give you a little taste of what's to come."

Sheppard knew he was in for it but he was resolved to get through whatever they did to him; he had Woolsey to protect and he didn't know what had happened to his people.

As with Woolsey, the three men took turns hitting him; their blows landing on his face and torso. He tried to keep from making a sound but one blow from Mosston landed directly on a rib; he was pretty certain from the pain that the rib broke from the impact and he couldn't prevent the groan that escaped. He was getting nauseous and remained dizzy but he steeled himself to the punishment.

Finally, they stopped, or Sheppard thought they had; Mosston told Pava to untie him. He dropped to the floor, his limbs slack and his back facing his captors; he didn't like not being able to see where these thugs were so with considerable effort he turned over. Then he wished he hadn't as Pava hit him on the thigh with the wooden rod, Woolsey's baseball bat. He tried to roll away from the blow but the chair blocked him; when Pava raised his arm to hit him again, Sheppard used every ounce of strength he had left to whip his leg out and he was able to take Pava's legs out from under him. He grabbed hold of the chair and pulled himself up, ignoring the burning pain in his side and the intense throbbing pain in his head. On his feet, he took a quick look around the room while his 'friends' regrouped, looking for anything he could use as a weapon.

Pava was on his feet and he was angry. "No wonder Ferish wants you dead, you are some piece of work, thinking you can win against us but it won't happen, colonel. I will rejoice the day Ferish kills you. I could kill you myself, right now."

With effort, Sheppard answered, "Yeah, well, that…would get you in trouble wouldn't it?"

Sheppard had spotted something he might be able to use but somehow he needed to get across the room and there were three thugs in front of him. He quickly reviewed his options and decided that his best bet was to get one of them to throw him in the direction he wanted to go. So he made a move against Mosston and surprised him, they all thought he would go for Pava. Mosston reacted instinctively and grabbed Sheppard and threw him up against the wall, his right leg hitting the wall first, pain rippling up his right side. At least Sheppard thought, he had landed exactly where he had wanted to land; before they got to him, he grabbed the piece of metal he had spotted and shoved into the inner pocket of his jacket.

Mosston grabbed him by his arms and picked him up. "OK, pretty boy, time to pay for your insolence." Sheppard knew what was coming, and as Mosston's fist connected with his cheek, the lights went out.

_Detention Hall_

With Isaacs in the lead, they made their way down the corridor to the main hallway without encountering any of the rebels. When they reached the opening, Isaacs motioned for them to stop, as he peeked around the corner to see if the hall was clear. Quickly he motioned for them to flatten against the wall; two of the rebels were heading in their direction.

Ronon swiftly moved next to Isaacs and Isaacs flashed a signal that there were two men coming from the left. Teyla had stayed in front of Rodney but he moved around her and blocked her with his body. She hadn't forgotten that Rodney had defended her when Ferish made a threat to her. She realized Rodney was trying to protect her again; she patted him on the shoulder and he reached around to touch her hand. Rodney's confidence had grown so much in the last years and Teyla was very proud of him at that moment; even though she knew she would still have to defend him.

As the two guys reached them, Isaacs and Ronon surprised them. Isaacs took his guy out with a quick right hook and Ronon took his down with a punch in the nose; they pulled the two men out of the main hall.

They relieved the rebels of their weapons and extra ammunition; one was carrying a Genii pistol and the other had pistol of a design they had not seen before as well as a knife. Ronon's comment when he found the knife had them all smiling, the big Satedan uttering, "sweet" was not something they heard everyday from him. One of the rebels was out cold but the other one was beginning to come around; Isaacs motioned for Ronon to keep watch while he interrogated the prisoner.

Isaacs knelt down next to the rebel, "Do you have any more of our people? Isaacs demanded.

The rebel just stared at the lieutenant and Isaacs grabbed him by the throat, "I don't have any problem ending your life right now. If you want to live, you'll tell me what I want to know." Isaacs's dark blue eyes, that Sheppard had called intense, were burning black, giving all indications that he was ready to carry out his threat.

The rebel nodded and Isaacs released his grip on the man's throat. Coughing, the rebel sat up and looked at the lieutenant, "We ambushed your men at the ring and the soldiers you had stationed at the hall."

"Where are they?"

"Here in the detention center."

"What cell?" Isaacs motioned for Dr. McKay.

"Unit 14, cells 3 and 4." As soon as he had finished, Isaacs hit the rebel in the jaw, knocking him out. He looked up at McKay.

"Doctor, open one of those cells while we tie these guys up," Teyla joined the lieutenant to help secure their prisoners while Ronon kept watch. Isaacs ripped one of the rebel's shirts into strips to make gags and to bind their hands and feet. Rodney had the door opened and he and Isaacs dragged the rebels in and locked them in. Isaacs took their weapons and handed one of the guns to Ronon.

"Come on, let's get our people." Isaacs led the way to the detention wing where they hoped they would find the Atlantis personnel.

_Farmhouse_

Pava and Fracie carried Sheppard partway down the stairs and threw him the rest of the way. This time Woolsey was ready; he had waited near the staircase and was able to grab Sheppard before his head hit the floor again. Woolsey didn't think he could take many more blows to the head and he knew what Sheppard had just been through upstairs.

He managed to get the colonel onto the bags that he had lain across the floor and then covered him up again. Once he had the colonel settled and had checked to make certain his pulse and breathing were steady, Woolsey sat back against a stack of crates and tired to figure how to get them out of this situation. The problem he faced however, was a tactical one not a diplomatic one; words and concepts wouldn't get them out of this, if it could he would feel much more confident. Cunning and knowledge of military tactics was the key to finding a way out of this mess. Woolsey knew that the one who had those skills was lying unconscious next to him on the cellar floor.

Woolsey conceded that he was going to have to wait for the colonel to wake up and tell him what he needed to do. He only hoped the three bad guys didn't come down the stairs for either one of them anytime soon.

_Detention Hall_

As they approached Unit 14, Isaacs stopped them while he and Ronon checked out the corridor; as soon as they saw it was clear, Ronon motioned for Teyla and Rodney to follow them. Stopping in front of Cell 3, they saw Major Lorne and Captain Waters and some of Lorne's team; Cell 4 held the rest with the exception of Sergeant Dean and Lieutenant Chang.

"Isaacs, good to see you," Lorne walked over to the cell door. "How did you get out?"

"Dr. McKay worked his magic and figured out the combinations." As he said that, McKay started working on the lock, he told Teyla the combination for the other cell and soon they had both doors open.

"Sir, what happened?"

"Let's walk and talk; come on everyone. Isaacs, Ronon; you have the guns, point and rear."

They began moving cautiously, looking for another way out besides the walkway back to the hall. McKay suggested that they find a staircase other than the one they came up and see if they could get to the ground floor without running into the rebels.

Teyla asked Lorne about the two missing Marines, he took a deep breath, "Dean took weapons fire and they forced us to leave her; I don't know if she is alive. Waters sent Chang to hide; he kept moving his team around the gate perimeter; hoping Chang could slip off undetected and find a good hiding place to watch the gate. If Chang was able to get through the gate, Atlantis should be sending help soon. Even if he didn't get to Atlantis, we haven't made our first call-in and I know Teldy, she won't wait long. If Chang is still there, he will be able to give her intel." Lorne took a deep breath and Teyla knew that he was concerned about Dean. "Teyla, the colonel, Woolsey; where are they?"

"They are in the hands of a man called Ferish Bernin, the leader of the so-called rebellion against the coalition. He was once one of Kolya's men, second in command of his renegade unit and was with him the day Colonel Sheppard killed Kolya. I believe that these men came here for just the reason they said, to surmount a rebellion against the coalition but when Ferish discovered that Atlantis was negotiating on behalf of the coalition, he threw those plans away. All he wants now is Colonel Sheppard dead and with Dr. Weir gone, Mr. Woolsey is to die in her place. Where they are right now, we do not know. We believe that they are still alive; Ferish told us that he wanted them to suffer for a long time to avenge all the Genii the colonel has killed."

Lorne was quiet for a few steps, "Teyla, these men are vicious; they won't hesitate to kill…" Isaacs brought them to a halt; motioning for them to backtrack to the nearest side hallway. They hid, Ronon and Isaacs up front. Someone was coming; Isaacs motioned that there was one person approaching. Ronon surprised the man and wrestled him to the floor.

"Ronon, no; let him up, it's Persim," Teyla quickly moved to Persim's side. Ronon helped the assemblyman off the floor as Teyla introduced Persim to Major Loren.

Persim looked at the Atlantian's, "Thank the ancestors, you are free; I was coming to find you and free you myself. There is a small group of Tegerans who have decided not to allow these men to take over our government; but there are not enough of us to take on all of the rebels. We need your assistance to overpower the guards who are holding our families."

Lorne shook his head, "We are more than willing to help you but we are unarmed; that doesn't help the odds of success very much."

"We believe we know where your weapons and other items are being kept; we have sent two of our people to see if they can locate them."

Lorne patted Persim on the back, "That's good. Now tell me about the area where your families are being held and how many of these rebels are guarding them?"

"They are almost 80 people being held in the dining hall in the assembly building; our families, the citizens who were in the hall yesterday and many of the people who work in the Assembly Hall. As far as we can tell, there are ten to twelve rebels guarding them. Please come this way, there is a back staircase we can access; we will join the rest of my people who are hiding in the building across the street." With Persim in the lead, they headed for the staircase.

Persim motioned to Major Lorne who caught up with him, "Major, some of my people were hiding near the front of the hall and were watching when you and your team were captured. One of your people was injured, I just want to let you know, she is alive and safe. My people were able to get to her once the rebels left the area; they took her to the home of one of our healers, who is treating her. The healer sent word that he is confident that she will survive."

Lorne was visibly relieved, "Persim, thank you; we were all very concerned about her."

Teyla smiled at both men, "Major, Persim, I believe we have all found new friends."

_Cellar_

Woolsey heard the door at the top of the cellar stairs open and his heart began to race; he wasn't sure that he or the still unconscious Sheppard could take more beatings. Pava came down the stairs carrying a pitcher and bread.

"Against his better judgment, Mosston is sending you water and food. He wants to make certain you are still alive when Ferish gets here so the real fun can begin." He dropped the bread on the floor and sat the pitcher down.

"When is Ferish arriving?" Woolsey decided to risk asking even though his speaking might mean another blow but he needed to know how much time they had.

"I shouldn't answer that but I will. Ferish has been delayed by the capture of the rest of the great Atlantians. I hear he is having a quite a lot of fun with, what was her name, Teyla, that's it; she kept him there a bit longer." He laughed as he watched the expression on Woolsey face. "Don't worry, she won't suffer for long." He was still laughing as he went back up the stairs.

As Woolsey watched the cellar door close, he heard a barely audible, raspy voice, "Gonna kill…that son of a…bitch."

"Colonel, thank goodness; you're awake."

"Yeah…are you ok?"

"I am as good as can be expected, colonel. You?"

"Too numb…to tell. Can…you help me…sit up?

Woolsey managed to help the colonel sit up, with his back against a cabinet; even in the dimming light, Sheppard was pale and his face covered in cuts and bruises, his lower lip cut and swollen, dried blood caked along his chin, temple and cheeks.

"You look like hell, colonel."

"You…aren't exactly ready for the cover…of GQ, Mr. Woolsey."

Woolsey laughed softy as he rubbed his swollen jaw, "I don't doubt that and Sheppard, call me Richard, this Mr. Woolsey thing seems a bit out of place here."

"Sure thing…Richard, I'm…John. Did I hear that jackass…say he brought dinner?"

"Yes, a gourmet feast, colonel, uh, John."

Woolsey retrieved the bread and the pitcher of water and for the next few minutes, they ate what they could in silence. Sheppard ate little but drank as much water as he thought safe to do, it was surprisingly cool and seemed to help his head clear a bit.

"John, we need to get out of here. What do you need for me to do?"

Through the swelling, Sheppard managed a crooked smile and reached inside his jacket and pulled out a thin piece of metal. "I have a weapon of sorts...spotted this piece of metal on the…floor upstairs, managed…to get them to throw me…in the wall next to it; they never knew…I picked it up. It's pretty strong and sharp…it can do some damage." Sheppard tried to stretch his legs but his right leg didn't want to work; he pushed himself to straighten it out despite the pain, knowing he was going to have to get his circulation going if he expected to walk.

"Look, Richard, you're…going to have to get dirty on this one. I…don't know how long I…I can last if things get physical. We have to be…ready. Let's hope only…one of those thugs comes down next time; it'll make…things easier."

"What are we going to do, colonel?"

"Escape, Richard, escape."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six A Little Death**

_Assembly Hall_

The Atlantians met up with the Tegeran citizens; there were only four Tegerans when Persim first began to round up help to battle the rebels. Word had spread that some were fighting back and the Tegerans now numbered about twenty, volunteers continuing to show up. With the nine Atlantis team members they made an almost equal force for the rebels. The rebels, however, still had more firepower.

They had gathered on the third floor of a building across the street from the assembly so that they could watch what the rebels were doing; Lorne, Waters, Isaacs and Ronon were discussing tactics. As they were deciding how to strike the dining hall and rescue the hostages, the two Tegerans who had gone in search of the missing weapons returned; guns, vests and radios in hand. Ronon looked positively euphoric when he had his hands on his gun again; even Rodney looked pleased to have his gear back. Now they had weapons, Lorne declared that the rescue mission was a go.

With the Atlantis team in the lead, they moved from the third floor to the first, Ronon and Isaacs had left by a door to the alley in the back and were moving toward the assembly building from each side, keeping their radios open so that Lorne could monitor their progress. Isaacs had seen two of the rebels walking along the south side of the building toward the detention center. It was only a matter of time before the rebels discovered they had escaped.

Both Ronon and Isaacs reported that the entry way to the dining hall was clear and Lorne was about to give the command to go, when he heard another voice over the radio.

"Ronon Dex, hold it right there." Ronon turned to find he was looking into the smiling face of Major Teldy, at least three teams of Marines including the missing Lt. Chang, and Dr Beckett. "And here I thought we needed to rescue you."

"Teldy, this is Lorne; you couldn't have come at a better time. Ronon, Isaacs return to the lobby and bring the cavalry with you."

The teams from Atlantis and their allies from Tegeran met up inside the lobby of the building where they had been hiding. Lorne, along with Isaacs and Colonel Sheppard's team gave Teldy's teams a quick update on the hostage situation in the dining hall and what they knew regarding Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard.

Persim had become the de facto leader of the Tegeran fighters; he knew that the safety of the colonel and the Atlantis commander were the upmost concern of the Atlantians but he needed their help to free the hostages. He approached the group as they were discussing their next move.

"Major Lorne, everyone; we realize that you are most concerned about your people who are still missing as are we. We feel a grave responsibility for the events that we have allowed to take place here. We should not have allowed these men to take over and put your people in such danger."

Persim paused, "We must ask for your help as our families and our friends are also in danger. If you will help us, I promise we will do all we can to help you find Colonel Sheppard and Mr. Woolsey." He waited, afraid that these brave people would say no but in his heart, he knew otherwise.

Lorne walked closer to him and put his hand on Persim's left shoulder. "Persim, you are right, we are very worried about the colonel and Mr. Woolsey but we are also not going to allow these so-called 'rebels' who are truly nothing but criminals to harm your people. We have every intention to free your people and then go after ours; your help will be appreciated."

Persim looked at Lorne for a moment and then dropped his head in embarrassment. When he looked back at Lorne, "We give you our thanks, I am not certain we deserve it."

Teyla walked up to Persim, "This is what friends and allies do for each other. Come; let's free your people and then we can free ours."

Lorne looked at everyone, "Ready? Let's do this." The allied group put their plan into action.

The operation was over within twenty minutes. The combined force rescued all the hostages included Governor Lalrahn and most of the assembly members, captured twelve rebels and killed two with only one Marine slightly injured. Dr. Beckett and the two Air Force paramedics set up a triage area in a room across from the dining hall where they could treat the injured, which included some of the hostages who had been beaten by their captors.

"Captain Waters, Lieutenant Stackhouse, take the prisoners with the exception of those two" pointing to the two rebels the hostages had indicated were in charge, "and put them in cells in the detention hall. Ozem, you are a security guard for Tegera?" Ozem, one of the volunteers who had responded to Persim's call, nodded and Lorne continued, "Go with them and leave some of your men to guard them, then come back here with all the people you can spare."

Captain Mercer, Lieutenant Bonner, I want your teams to sweep the assembly building for any more of these rebels and get it done quickly. " All of the team leaders acknowledged Lorne's orders and headed for the assembly hall.

Turning to those left in the dining hall, he motioned to the two rebels he had held back, "We have some interrogating to do."

_Cellar_

Woolsey and the colonel had gotten into position, waiting for someone to return to the cellar. Sheppard was watching Woolsey; the Atlantis commander was sitting very still on a stack of crates, near the stairs. Sheppard was going to ask a lot of this diplomat if they were to get out of this situation. He knew that Woolsey was nervous but there wasn't much he could do about it.

Sheppard was lying on a low counter that ran along the side of the cellar; he needed to be able to move quickly and knew that lying on the cellar floor would make it to difficult for him to do so. He would only have to swing his legs over and stand up from this position which would allow him to move with more ease. He was lying on his right side, his left side hurting too much, his head facing Woolsey and the staircase. Woolsey was to distract whoever came down the stairs so they would turn away from him, thinking him unconscious.

They didn't have long to wait; Pava and Fracie came down the stairs, pausing to determine where both of their prisoners were located. Seeing Sheppard lying on the bench, Pava remarked, "Looks like the pretty boy's still out cold. Mosston got him good with that last punch." As they both turned toward Woolsey, Fracie said, "How sweet that you got your little friend up off the floor so he wouldn't be cold. Hate to break it to you but pretty soon, he'll be cold for good and so will you." Fracie was still about two feet away from Woolsey with Pava directly behind him. The mistake they made was turning their back on Sheppard.

Pava never knew what happened; Sheppard grabbed his head, hand over Pava's mouth, and the sharp metal strip sliced deep into Pava's throat, blood spurting from his neck as Sheppard let go of him; Pava was dead before he hit the cellar floor.

Fracie had reached for Woolsey's arm to pull him off the crates when Woolsey head-butted him and pushed him toward Sheppard. Fracie recovered and took a swing at Woolsey but missed as Woolsey feigned a move to the right and then ducked left. Fracie did not have time to recover and his momentum spun him around and he was facing the colonel. He had just enough time to realize what Sheppard was going to do right before he felt the makeshift metal knife plunge into his chest. With a look of surprise on his face, Fracie sank to the floor and was still.

Sheppard bent over, a moan escaping as the pain in his left side spiked from the movement; he pulled the 'knife' from Fracie's chest, checking for a pulse but there was no pulse to find. He stood up gingerly, grabbing a sack from the counter to wipe the blood from the weapon. "OK, that's two bad guys down and one bad guy to go; let's go find him." He looked over at Woolsey and gave him a slight grin, "That was…a really good move; I'm pretty sure Ronon would be proud of you, I know…I am."

As they reached the stairway, Sheppard turned back to Woolsey and spoke in a hushed broken voice, "When we get…to the top, you stay on the…stairs. I am going to scout out the first floor…to locate Mosston." Sheppard began to make the difficult, painful climb to the first floor; Woolsey struggling behind him.

Both men were breathing heavily as they reached the top of the stairs; Sheppard cautiously looked into the hallway from the open cellar door. To his left, there appeared to be a large room where the hallway ended and at the other end of the hall there was a closed door. On his right, across the hall there was an opening with no door that led to a kitchen; directly in front of him, an entry into a dining room. He motioned for Woolsey to stay put while he crossed the hall into the dining room; he needed to find out where Mosston was before he let Woolsey join him. The last thing he needed was for Mosston to surprise Woolsey; the Atlantis commander had done very well so far but he didn't want to ask too much of him. If they were lucky, Mosston would not be in the farmhouse and they could get of there.

Sheppard looked into the dining room and it was empty except for a simple wood table and four chairs; dirty plates and empty bottles of what might have been wine were sitting on the table. There was a door on the left of the room leading to what looked like a living room, the door to the right led toward the kitchen. He listened for movement in the kitchen and hearing none, eased into the dining room, moving cautiously toward the living room. Then he heard a voice talking to him and it wasn't Woolsey.

"Well, well, Sheppard, you are resourceful aren't you? Ferish has told us about you and how much Kolya hated you because you could outsmart him time and time again, but you don't get to outsmart me; not this time. I am going to assume you have taken care of my men?" Mosston was standing in the kitchen doorway.

"Wasn't very hard…to outsmart them; it was actually pretty easy, those guys were idiots." Sheppard answered trying not to let Mosston know how weak he felt.

Mosston leaned against the door frame with the casualness of someone who knew he was in control. He sneered, "I don't see your friend; please tell me that at least, they killed him or do I need to keep watch in case he sneaks up on me?"

"Unfortunately, Fracie…killed him; but…don't worry, Fracie paid for it." Sheppard was trying to see where Woolsey had gone without alerting Mosston. He could see that Woolsey was no longer standing in the doorway to the cellar.

"Fracie and Pava were fools; it was only a matter of time before I killed them myself, thanks for taking care of that little task for me."

"Always…willing to help, now, I think…I'll get out of here."

"You might be brave, Sheppard but you are not strong enough to take me on. Besides, Ferish will be here soon and he will relish taking his revenge out on you." Sheppard smiled stoically, because he knew something Mosston did not know.

As Mosston started toward Sheppard, he stopped abruptly; a surprised look etched on his face, as the realization of what had just happened to him registered. He gazed at Sheppard, as blood starting to trickle from the corner of his mouth, "Kolya was right; you are a clever man."

Mosston fell to the floor, revealing Woolsey who was standing in the doorway of the kitchen. Looking down at Mosston, Sheppard could see a large knife sticking out of Mosston's back; he kneeled on his left leg as best he could and checked Mosston's pulse; there wasn't one.

"Richard, thanks…I wouldn't have been able to stop him if…he came at me. I told you…this would get dirty." Sheppard's breathing was labored and Woolsey was getting concerned about the colonel. "You go in…the kitchen and see if you can find some food we…can take with us and maybe…something to keep some water in. I'm going to see if I…can find our gear. We need to get out of here."

Woolsey just stood there, shocked at what he had done and maybe more shocked that they had just killed three men and Sheppard was moving on to the next problem without blinking. He watched the colonel walk gingerly through the doorway into the other room, favoring his right leg, holding his left side and breathing hard. Woolsey was certain he would never understand the motivations of this man or any of the military but he was certainly beginning to respect them more and more. Turning into the kitchen, he started looking for food.

Hardly five minutes had passed when Sheppard returned, "Woolsey, found our stuff, all but the communicators and the radios, they destroyed them. Did find their weapons and also found these, not even broken." He smiled as he handed Woolsey his glasses, "Help me…get this vest on, will ya?"

Woolsey helped the colonel who winced badly as he tried to put his left arm in the vest; he was certain the colonel had some broken ribs. He managed to get into his vest by himself, though not without pain, and Sheppard handed him one of the rebels' weapons.

"This is a Genii weapon, shoots…pretty much like our weapons. You should be…able to handle this with no problem. Any…luck with food and water?"

"Yes, I found a couple of loaves of bread, some cheese, some kind of meat, and some fruit, at least I think it's fruit. As for water, I found this," he held up a large canteen that looked like military issue, what military was a mystery.

"Good, this certainly must be our…lucky day," the colonel's sarcasm not lost on Woolsey.

"Indeed, colonel. The canteen must have belonged to one of the rebels; I found it laying on top of a shirt I think Pava was wearing when I first saw him. I've used the shirt to make a sling to carry the food." He watched as Sheppard clipped his P-90 to his TAC vest and checked the ammo in his 9-mil; he had found his K-bar and replaced it in its sheath and placed the large knife that killed Mosston into a compartment on his vest. From another pocket he retrieved a pair of night-vision goggles which he put on his head.

"Richard, check your vest and see if you have a pair of these goggles; this will make things a lot easier." Woolsey looked and was relieved that he had a pair as well. Sheppard was also relieved; both of them having night goggles would mean that they could move faster or at least as fast as they could in the condition they were in at the moment.

The last thing he did was check another pocket and with a slight smile, he pulled out a small green cardboard box, and Woolsey heard him say 'good' under his breath. He saw Woolsey looking at him and he motioned to Woolsey with the box, "Gum?" Woolsey shook his head no.

Sheppard finished putting his gear away, "OK, come on, we need…to get out of here. It's dark and I want to find some shelter as soon as possible, we need to rest. Give me the canteen, you carry the food."

Woolsey handed Sheppard the canteen and he slipped his arm into the sling he had made from the shirt to carry the food. They left the farmhouse by the kitchen door and Sheppard led them out into the dark.

_The Dining Hall_

Major Lorne waited until the prisoners were seated, hands tied, before he walked up to them; Ronon on his heels.

"We need information on the whereabouts of Colonel Sheppard and Richard Woolsey and we need it now." His voice quiet but there was no misinterpreting his intention; he would have that information.

The two rebels simply stared straight ahead and did not speak but they seemed to be watching Ronon. Lorne asked again just as quietly, "Where are our people," yet there was still no answer. Lorne didn't speak, he turned slightly as if he was going to walk away but moved quickly and kicked over the chair of what he thought was the stronger of the two men, the dark haired one; the younger redheaded prisoner was startled by his action. The chair back hit the floor with a loud crack as the wooden back broke under the prisoner's weight.

Lorne knelt down by the prisoner's head, "We can do this the easy way or the hard way and I assure you, the hard way will not be pleasant. In fact, I think I'll just turn you over to Ronon," as he got up, he motioned for the two Marines standing next to the prisoners to upright the chair. "Cut him loose," as they did, Lorne turned to Ronon, "He's all yours." Ronon grabbed the dark haired man by the back of his collar and drug him across the floor toward the dining hall door.

Lorne turned back to the remaining prisoner; "He should have talked; Ronon's not as nice as I am." No sooner had Lorne utter those words when they heard a bloodcurdling scream emanate from the corridor. The redhead looked toward the dining hall door, frightened and trembling; Lorne chuckled to himself, he realized he owed Ronon $20; the Satedan had told him that they should work on the redhead, that he was the weaker of the two. Lorne laughed to himself, now that Ronon had caught the betting fever, he suspected they would all be a lot poorer.

Another scream came from the hallway, followed by another and then another, then silence; the redheaded prisoner was now visibly shaking. Lorne, who had taken a seat at a nearby table, looked over at him and shook his head, "Ronon is in charge now, if your friend doesn't talk, he'll be coming for you next."

At that moment, Ronon appeared in the doorway of the dining hall, a dark angry look on his face as he calmly wiped his knife off; the rag appeared to have blood on it. The prisoner's face became ghostlike pale, his red hair standing out like a halo of fire above his head; he tried to talk but he was having difficulty getting his mouth working. As Ronon got closer to him and the Marines moved to untie him, he yelled, "I know where they are, I'll tell you! Please, keep him away from me!"

Ronon walked over to Lorne and whispered, "You were right major, Sergeant Fuller can scream like he's really being tortured and those new power bars with the red fruit filling make good fake blood. Now, let's find out where they are." The two men approached the prisoner.

_Outside the Farmhouse_

Woolsey was out of breath, they had been moving through the woods east of the farmhouse for almost forty minutes without stopping and he was close to collapsing; no, he thought, he had already collapsed even through he was still moving. Sheppard was in front of him and Woolsey could tell he was getting weaker and weaker with each step.

"Colonel, don't you think we need to rest for a few minutes? I could really use some food," but he was actually thinking that the colonel needed rest and food more than he did.

Sheppard turned, "Yeah, we should rest a few minutes but then we have to keep moving." The colonel's face was pale and he was in obvious pain; his breathing ragged, his voice raspy. "Let's go over here," he headed toward an outcropping of bushes with several trees behind them, "I think we'll be out of sight." They walked into the underbrush and found a small clearing near some trees; Sheppard removed the night-vision goggles and placed his hand against a tree to steady himself.

As Woolsey started to sit he noticed that Sheppard was having a hard time sitting down; he took hold of his arm but the colonel tried to shake him off. "No, John, you will let me help you."

Sheppard shook his head in agreement and Woolsey eased the him down as gently as he could.

"Richard, you're…pretty good in a fight." He was struggling to take the top off the canteen and Woolsey took it from him, opened it and handed it back to the colonel.

"John, you are too injured to keep walking like this and I am not in great shape either; we need to find some shelter so that we can hide and rest." He took some bread, cheese, meat and fruit out of the sling he made and handed Sheppard bread and a piece of fruit; Sheppard refused the meat and cheese. Woolsey was pretty certain that the colonel was nauseated and that wasn't a good thing considering the hits he had taken to his head.

They ate and drank in silence for a bit but Woolsey noticed what Sheppard had eaten which was little more than a bite of bread and he had only taken a couple of sips of water. He also seemed not to be able to get comfortable, Woolsey asked, "Colonel, do you have a broken rib or two?"

"I'd laugh…at that question but it would hurt too much. Yeah, I think…ribs broken." Sheppard tried to lean against the tree behind him but gave up, the pain was too much.

"We need to bind those ribs, colonel." Woolsey began to rummage his TAC vest for bandages; he pulled out the pressure bandages but Sheppard put up his hand, "No…don't wrap around anymore, there...should be tape in the next pocket. Woolsey found the tape and then he removed the colonel's vest and BDU shirt and then pulled up his t-shirt. Sheppard guided him as to where to place the tape along the injured ribs from his sternum to his spine and then above and below the fractured ribs. It was painful and Woolsey wasn't very adept at bandaging but with a little direction from Sheppard he managed to get some support for the colonel's chest. He helped Sheppard get dressed and then watched as Sheppard tried to lean against the tree again.

"Thanks; that feels better; breathing a little easier." Sheppard seemed to relax somewhat.

"There are some syringes in here; I suppose this is the morphine?" Sheppard nodded to Woolsey, who continued, "Should you have some? I mean, I know you might have a concussion and I think Keller told me no morphine if the injured person has a concussion."

"Hmmm…did the dizziness and nausea and blinding headache give it away? No…not morphine, just some Tylenol; that's all, but that…I will take." Woolsey handed them to Sheppard along with the canteen; then decided taking a couple himself would be a good idea.

"Colonel, you are not in good shape. I don't understand why we didn't take the transport that was at the farmhouse? This would have certainly been a lot easier on us if we didn't have to walk."

"I thought…about that, Richard but there was only a one-lane road leading from the farmhouse, if we had taken the transport we could have…run into Ferish and gotten blocked in. I don't think either one of us can take on anymore of these guys."

"Well, you're right about that, colonel; I couldn't swat a fly right now." Woolsey leaned against the tree behind him and decided the colonel was on to something; it felt good to have some support behind his back.

"Listen, I know this has not been easy for you and I wish…I could have protected you better but you have…really done well. We'll get out of this."

Woolsey chuckled, "I never had any doubts, colonel."

"Mr. Woolsey; and they say you don't have…a sense of humor."

"Never thought I didn't, colonel."

Sheppard attempted to get up, "Come on; let's move before we get too comfortable, I want to get some more distance between us and that farmhouse before we take some time to rest. Make sure we don't leave anything here." Woolsey reluctantly extended his hand to help the colonel to his feet and they headed into the dark, Sheppard leading the way.


	7. Chapter 7

**A Little Dismay**

_Outside of Galaz_

"Major, we are coming up on the turn toward the farm; it should just be about another twenty minutes before we get there." Persim was sitting in the front of the transport with the driver Orthan Mizen, who owned the farm.

From the back of the transport, Lorne acknowledged Persim and looked at Ronon, Teyla, Rodney and Dr. Beckett who were riding with him along the other members of his team. There were four other transports behind them carrying the rest of the Atlantis contingent and as many Tegerans that could fit into the vehicles.

"If 'redhead' was telling the truth, we should be less than a half-hour behind Ferish and his men. It wasn't lucky for Orthan," Lorne pointed to the driver, "and his wife that they were held hostage, her father is an assemblyman, but it was lucky for us. Having such detail about the house and the surrounding area will really help."

McKay was antsy, "If they haven't killed them before we get there. Can't you make this thing go any faster?"

"Dr. McKay, we can't go any faster, these roads are narrow and these transports aren't built for speed; we are going to get there as soon as we can. Remember, this is Colonel Sheppard we're talking about; he has an uncanny ability to find a way out of some nasty stuff." Lorne smiled slightly at the doctor but that didn't satisfy McKay; he wanted to know for certain that Sheppard was OK.

_Farmhouse_

Ferish Bernin was normally a very, controlled man. As a member of the Genii military, he learned to control his emotions, an expected and valued trait on Genii. Under Kolya's command, he had honed that skill by following his mentor's behavior; the only time he had ever seen Kolya lose control was when he had dealings with Colonel John Sheppard. Ferish was beginning to understand.

Ferish and his elite team had arrived at the farmhouse moments before to find all three of his people dead; their prisoners gone. Mosston was one of his most trusted recruits, a mercenary from Cestia who had a reputation for killing over 200 people; all of course for hire. Mosston had jumped at the chance to join Ferish; he had seen through the "rebellion" dogma. He knew that Ferish had bigger plans that he wanted to be part of but now he lay dead on the floor of a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere; dead at the hands of Colonel John Sheppard. Sheppard would pay.

One of his personal guards came up from the cellar, "Ferish, I can't find the knife that he used to kill Pava and Fracie or the bigger knife that killed Mosston, so he must have taken them with him. We haven't found their weapons or those vest things either, so they must have them as well."

"So you are telling me that they are armed and we don't have an idea where they are but they have killed three of my men." He turned to the guard, rage evident on his face, "We will find them and Sheppard will pay for this."

He assembled his guards, "They did not take the transport so they had to have left the farmhouse on foot. There are woods close by to the east and about a half-mile to the southwest; they most likely headed for one of those areas." Pointing to one group of his men, "I want you four to head to the southwest and you four are with me, we will search the east woods. Just remember this; these men are very cunning, so watch yourselves and do not forget, no one kills Sheppard but me."

_The Woods_

Another half-hour had passed and Sheppard had changed direction a couple of times, telling Woolsey that he hoped to confuse Ferish and his men; Sheppard knew they would come for them and was concerned how far behind them Ferish might actually be. At one point, they had come upon a swiftly moving stream and Sheppard led them across it. Woolsey was nervous about the current until he saw that the stream was shallow. Sheppard had them step out onto the bank at one point, walk a few feet to the leafy underbrush, then backup into the stream using the tracks they made. They had then followed the stream for a while longer and exited along a rocky shore, walking into the woods again. The colonel was hoping the tactic would throw Ferish off and send him searching for them in the wrong direction.

Every now and then when the trees would thin out a bit, they could see farmland in the distance. Sheppard wasn't very happy about being so close to the edge of the woods but he thought that the tree line must be meandering along the top of the low ridge that they were traveling on.

Woolsey was tired and if he was tired, he knew the colonel had to be as well. He was about to request another rest period when the colonel raised his fist which Woolsey had learned meant stop walking.

"Colonel?" Sheppard turned his profile to Woolsey and put his fingers to his lips. Woolsey thought, I do know what that means. Sheppard then motioned for Woolsey to get down or at least he thought that was what the colonel meant.

As he dropped to his knee, Sheppard did the same turning his head enough this time to look at Woolsey. His voice very low, his breathing still fractured, "There is a small wood hut ahead, could be for hunting or shelter during storms; too small to be a house. You stay here, if anything happens or there is anyone in that hut, you go that way, fast," pointing to the southeast which would take Woolsey deeper into the woods. "You stay out of sight, eventually Atlantis will find you. I am going to check out that hut." He took a ragged breath. "We might be able to stay there at least until daylight. I'll be back." He handed Woolsey the canteen, unclipped his P-90, and quietly moved off.

Woolsey watched as the colonel shifted from tree to tree until he was even with the windowless left side of the hut. Moving with more ease than he should have been able to, Sheppard reached the side of the hut and edged around the corner. He reached for the latch on the door and gently pulled it back and waited; Woolsey was holding his breath. After a few seconds and no indication that anyone was inside, Sheppard opened the door and swept the small space. Stepping into the hut, he was out of Woolsey's sight until he reappeared at the door and motioned for director to come to the hut; Woolsey ran as fast as his battered body would allow him to join the colonel.

As Woolsey slid past the colonel to enter the hut, he didn't notice Sheppard pressing something against the outside of the door near the handle; Sheppard then closed the door and set the interior locks. He turned to Woolsey; "Well, this isn't exactly what we expected."

_The Farmhouse_

The transports carrying the Atlantis team and the Tegerans halted about one-half mile from the farmhouse; Lorne ordered Captain Waters and Lieutenant Bonner's team to go scout the property. Shortly, Waters' reported that the house appeared deserted; Lorne and Ronon took point, and the remaining rescue team headed for the farmhouse.

Dr. McKay was in charge of the scanner and he began to sweep the area, "Lorne, there are five men headed east from the farmhouse and four headed southwest. They aren't that far from the house."

"No way to tell if any of them are the colonel or Mr. Woolsey?"

McKay shook his head, "No, no way."

"OK…let's check out this house."

Two teams went in and cleared the house and reported back to Major Lorne. "Sir, Colonel Sheppard and Mr. Woolsey are not in the house; however, we found three dead men, all wearing brown clothing similar to what we have seen on the rebels, sir. My men are moving the bodies into the back yard."

"Thank you, captain. Major Teldy, take Stackhouse, and Isaacs' teams with you, follow the men going east; Captain Waters, take Bonner and Carlisle's teams and follow the men to the southwest. Persim, Ozem, divide your men and send a group with each team but keep a few here to watch the house. Everyone, do not engage unless you find the colonel and Mr. Woolsey and they are in danger. We are going to check out the house and will follow along shortly. Stay in radio contact." Major Teldy and Captain Waters acknowledged the orders and left with their teams; Ozem's Tegeran teams followed after leaving Orthan and three security guards at the farmhouse. Colonel Sheppard's team, Dr. Beckett, and Persim followed the major into the house; the remainder of Lorne's team stayed outside.

"What in bloody hell is this? There is blood all around this chair, on the wall; splatter from blood all over. What did these damn brutes do to them?" Dr. Beckett was incensed at the amount of blood around the chair.

Lorne had been quiet since he walked in the room, "They were beaten doctor; worked over pretty good from the looks of it." The major was angry but he knew better than to allow his personal feeling cloud how he did his duty. He owed his life to his CO and he was going to bring him home; hopefully, in one piece.

Ronon walked over to the chair and put his hand on the bloody ropes that had been used to most likely tie Sheppard and Woolsey while they were being beaten. "I told Ferish I would kill him if they die; I think I'll kill him anyway just for this." Lorne didn't miss how calm and quiet Ronon's voice was; he knew that was a clear indication of just how serious Ronon was.

Persim was quiet; the pain of what had happened here to men they had invited to Tegeran was crushing. The Tegerans were a better people than this; he would have to make certain that they atoned for their behavior.

Teyla had spotted the wooden rod and gone over to pick it up, "Dr. Beckett, there is blood on this stick."

Beckett took the rod from Teyla, "This is made of a very hard wood; if they used this to hit them, it could have done serious damage."

They walked into the dining room and saw the blood that had drained from Mosston and did a quick look around the cellar noting the blood evidence of Pava and Fracie's deaths. Beckett walked up to the low bench that Sheppard had laid on, "These sacks have been placed here like one of them was using them to keep the other warm; there is even a few folded to use as a pillow." Pointing to a pile of them on the floor, "These were probably used to cover whoever was laying here. I am worried that one of them is badly injured and I have no doubts which one it is. I'll bet the colonel has taken the brunt of the beatings to protect Woolsey."

Lorne patted the doctor on the shoulder, "Don't jump to conclusion yet, doc. Three men died here and I am certain that Sheppard and Woolsey had everything to do with it. The fact that our guys aren't here, pretty much tells me that they are well enough to manage their own escape and get away from here. That can't be all bad."

"I suppose you're right, lad but I'd be happier if we knew they are OK."

"Dr, Beckett, we would all be happy if we knew that." Teyla smiled at the doctor.

"OK, we need to get out of here and catch up with the teams." Lorne led them out of the cellar and out the back door.

"Major, Teyla," they looked over at Persim, "I am going back to the city; I believe that I need to speak to the Assembly regarding these events and what we have done to the people of Atlantis. You were only here to help us and we betrayed you. We must find a way to make this up to you and to ourselves."

Teyla started to speak but Persim stopped her, "There will be time to talk later; you need to find the colonel and Mr. Woolsey. I will take a transport back to town but will have it returned. If we do not hear from you by daybreak, I will have many more people here to help look. Is there anything else that I could do for you?"

"Could you dial Atlantis and let them know what is happening? We don't need any help at the moment but Dr. Zelenka is in charge of Atlantis and I know that they will want to be updated. They are no doubt worried about all of us."

"I will be more than happy to contact Atlantis for you. I will also send food back with the transport so that once you have found them and return here, there will be food for the team."

Lorne nodded and Teyla placed her hand on Persim's shoulder. "Please, do not blame yourself; these rebels have created this problem and together we will solve it."

"Thank you and good luck." Persim left.

Lorne looked Ronon, "So, which direction do you think Sheppard would take?"

Ronon didn't answer right away; he had walked over to a fence post where something had caught his eye. When he got closer and could see the object better, he laughed out loud. "This way, Sheppard has gone east."

"You seem pretty sure about that, Ronon." Lorne remarked.

"Yeah, I am."

Lorne tapped his COM, "Waters, we think the colonel and Woolsey have gone east, when you catch up with the four thugs you're chasing, capture them or finish them, whatever you have to do. Teldy, we will be catching up with you shortly. Lorne out."

As he heard his team leaders acknowledge his message, Lorne turned to Ronon and Teyla, "OK, you two are our trackers; let's find them." They headed into the dark night, Ronon leading the way.

_The Hut_

Sheppard and Woolsey stood in the small hut, a space of only about eight feet by eight feet, and really didn't know what to think. From the outside the building looked like a small rustic hut made of rough lumber; the roof made of metal. Inside was a different story; the hut was lined with a very strong metal on the walls and floor and ceiling; there were a cot sitting against each of the side walls and huge storage bins on the other full wall. The wall with the door and small window had a low cabinet which had a lock on it. The glass in the window looked to be about four inches thick and was remarkably optically clear for such thick glass.

"Colonel, what the hell is all of this?" Woolsey looked really confused.

Sheppard put his P-90 down on one of the cots and then sat down very slowly; he waited for a second to answer as he let his breathing slow down. "I think this must be an outpost, Isaacs was telling us about them on the way to the Assembly Hall when we first arrived in the city; I guess you were too far back to hear him. The Tegerans hid from the Wraith in old tunnels that dated from some civil war hundreds of years ago." He shifted back on the cot until his back reached the wall and he relaxed a bit, "Isaacs was told that the Wraith couldn't detect the Tegerans when they were in the tunnels so that didn't get culled very often or cull many when they did. He said there were some sort of outposts scattered around the country but he didn't find out what these outposts were for."

Woolsey had walked the short distance to the bins and was beginning to rummage though them, "Colonel, there are can goods, dry foods, bottles of water, blankets, even some bandages and medicines in these bins. I presume this must be a place for people to get supplies if they are cut off from their homes during a culling or maybe like you said earlier, in case of bad weather."

"Well, whatever it is, get some of those blankets out, lie down on that very comfortable cot, well it might not be real comfortable but better than we have had in a while, and get from rest. I'll take the first watch."

"No, colonel, you will rest. I need you to be as strong as you can be if we have to face Ferish. I will take the first watch." When Sheppard started to protest, Woolsey simply said, "That's an order, colonel." He handed the colonel a couple of blankets and helped him lie down on the cot; once he had placed the blankets over Sheppard, he walked over to the small window to keep watch.

_The Woods_

Ferish was resolute; he was going to kill Sheppard. He had never wanted to kill anyone more than he did the Atlantis military leader. At first, he had wanted Sheppard to suffer a long, drawn-out death but now, he just wanted the bastard dead.

"Ferish, I have tracks leading directly into a stream just up ahead," one of his men yelled.

"Well, follow them, you fools," Ferish yelled back. He watched as the men with him headed for the stream; if they didn't find Sheppard, he'd kill them all.

_The Woods_

"Ronon, are you sure you know where you are going?" McKay was a few steps behind him, "I mean you've changed direction a couple of times. How do you know this is the path?"

"I know, McKay; don't worry."

"Yeah, me not worry; not going to happen."

Teyla held Rodney back, "Be patient, doctor, Ronon is an expert tracker. I also believe that he knows something we don't."

"What do you mean, knows something, what could he know that we don't?"

"I am not certain but he seems very positive that he knows the direction that John and Mr. Woolsey have taken."

Ronon walked toward Teyla, McKay, Lorne, Teldy, and Beckett, "We are not far behind Ferish; there is a stream ahead and at least 7 sets of footprints, all leading into the stream. Best I can tell, Ferish and his men number five; so the other two sets could be Sheppard and Woolsey."

Lorne called Lt. Stackhouse over, "Lieutenant, I need for you to do some recon; take your team and go up stream a bit before you cross over; locate Ferish and his team and report back. They crossed the stream, uh, where Ronon?"

He pointed due east, "There."

"Go." Lorne ordered; Lt. Stackhouse and his team quickly headed toward the stream.

"The good thing is that our guys can probably move quicker than Ferish's men can because of the night vision goggles. They should be able to catch up to those bastards and report back to us quickly."

"While you are waiting for word, I am going to scout a bit." Ronon told Lorne who nodded and told him to make it quick.

McKay had been standing nervously in the background demanded, "How the hell are we going to find Sheppard if we are just standing here?" Dr. Beckett walked over to Rodney and put a hand on his shoulder, hoping to calm him down. Rodney jerked away from Beckett; he was not going to be placated, he wanted answers.

Lorne took a deep breath, "Dr. McKay, we are going to find them, we just need some intel so that we have a better idea what we are up against. We can't help the colonel and Woolsey if we are flying blind. This isn't going to take long and we will be moving again, I promise."

McKay turned to Beckett and apologized, "I'm sorry, I just can't stand here and do nothing. We have to find them."

"It's OK, Rodney; all of us are worried but we need to trust Major Lorne, Colonel Sheppard does." Rodney nodded; he knew Beckett was right, they could trust Lorne.

A few more minutes passed before they heard Lt. Stackhouse's voice over their COM's, "Major, we have flanked the rebels, there are five of them; our people are not with them. They're armed with Genii pistols, a couple of them are carrying rifle-like weapons, and we did count a fair amount of knives."

Just as Lorne started to answer Stackhouse, Ronon's voice interrupted, "Lorne, they're following a false trail that Sheppard left, I have two sets of footprints coming out of the stream about 100 yards beyond the first prints, heading due south. I'm positive these tracks belong to Sheppard and Woolsey; got a clean mud print, looks like USAF military tread."

"Understood, Ronon. Stackhouse, stay on those guys; they most likely won't be fooled for long; keep us informed of their progress, if you get into trouble, three clicks on the radio and we'll find you."

"Understood, major; Stackhouse out."

"Let's go join Ronon and find our people. Isaacs, split your team, I want guys on each side of the stream until we reach Ronon's location. Don't be complacent; Ferish may have more people in the area than the five Stackhouse reported. Move." A chorus of 'yes, sirs' resounded from the teams and the Atlantian's began walking toward the stream.

_The Hut_

Woolsey looked at his watch, it was almost 0200 hrs; close to twenty-four hours since they left Atlantis. He had climbed onto the cabinet under the window and taken a seat; he could still see out of the tiny window but sitting was certainly better than standing. At least, the night-vision goggles, which Sheppard had required to be standard equipment in the TAC vest, allowed him to see as far as the tree line. A couple of times he had almost awakened the colonel when he thought he saw something but he had waited just a few seconds longer than his panic level normally allowed and the movement turned out to be deer-like animals foraging. He relaxed and had to admit he was pretty proud of himself; he had overcome his panic at least a little bit. Then again, maybe he was just too tired to react.

Sheppard had been asleep for nearly a half-hour and Woolsey had noticed his breathing was less labored and more even; a nice soft cot mattress beat a cellar floor any day. He knew that he needed rest as well but he forced himself to stay awake; the more rest the colonel could get, the better the odds he would be able to get them out of this mess. Woolsey really hoped that Atlantis would find them before they had to face Ferish, which would be a good thing.

_The Woods_

They met up with Ronon and he led them out of the stream and into the direction he was certain Sheppard and Woolsey had taken. Lorne had Lt. Isaacs cross a bit further down stream and had Teldy's team fan off to the left; his team took the rear, Ronon and Teyla on point.

As they moved some distance away, Teyla asked. "Ronon, I realize that you are an excellent tracker, better than I am actually, but you seem unusually confident that we are taking the same path that John and Mr. Woolsey are taking. I would like to know why."

Ronon smiled, "Let's just say that one night after we had taken a long run around Atlantis, Sheppard and I sat out on the pier for a long time and talked; he kept asking me questions about how I learned to do the things I can do: hunt, track, shoot."

Teyla laughed, "I wouldn't mind knowing those things myself."

"We started talking about ways to leave a trail in case we got lost or were kidnapped; Sheppard had a silly idea, it was late, and we decided if one of us was ever in that situation, we would use his idea and see if it worked."

"So, he has left clues that only you know?"

"Maybe."

"Ronon, are you telling that you have found these clues?"

"I'll tell you once we find him."

"I will be expecting an explanation."

_The Woods_

Lt. Stackhouse's team had been trailing the five men for about forty-five minutes when Ferish stopped abruptly and starting yelling at the man who was on point.

"Keiter, I haven't seen tracks for the last mile; do you have a clue where they went?" He walked up to the man and grabbed him by the throat.

"It is difficult in the dark, I cannot see well enough to made out tracks; we should wait until daybreak, Ferish."

Ferish glared at Keiter for a few seconds and then backhanded him, knocking him onto the ground. "We are not waiting for daylight, I want Sheppard now!" Turning toward the others, Ferish continued, "We are not going in the right direction, Sheppard has fooled us; two injured men could not out distance us, he's left a false trail. Norat, you take the lead and find their tracks; we need to go south, look closer to the stream."

Stackhouse tapped his COM, "Major Lorne, Stackhouse; I can confirm Ferish is one of the men in this group. He has realized that the colonel left a false trail; they are turning south and taking a path closer to the stream. Will update in 10 minutes. Stackhouse out."

The major acknowledged his report but requested an update in five minutes. Lorne realized that every minute was going to count if Ferish was now heading in the direction they thought Sheppard had gone.


	8. Chapter 8

**A Little Defeat**

_The Woods_

"Halt" A whispered voice resonated in their ears.

"Sergeant Mehra, this is Lorne, what's up?"

The Marine responded, "Sir, I saw some movement but it appears to be a large animal, looks kind of like a deer, sir. Sorry, false alarm."

"Don't be sorry, sergeant; we need to be careful. I don't want to lose anyone." Lorne continued, "OK, everyone, head's up; keep a lookout for wildlife and try not to spook any we come across. Teldy, Isaacs, report."

Major Teldy responded, "Sir, we're clear; my team is currently deployed about ten yards apart, angled back to your point."

"Sir, Isaacs here; we are apparently right on the edge of the forest, there is farmland to our right. I have my men just inside the tree line and deployed as Teldy's team."

"Roger that, stay in those formations and listen for updates from Stackhouse; I don't want anyone caught by these thugs."

Lorne looked ahead and saw that Ronon had stopped, appearing to look around; Lorne walked up to him. "Hey big guy, lose something?" Ronon turned and gave the major a rather testy look and Lorne realized that maybe he should have phrased that question a little differently. He should know by now that when one of Sheppard's team is missing, especially Sheppard, the rest are not prone to humor, even to relieve tension.

"Sorry, I meant to ask, did you find something?"

Ronon didn't answer, he was still looking around; he walked around the nearby trees for a bit and then stopped and turned to the major, "Yeah, I found something. Sheppard and Woolsey went this way," with that Ronon started walking. Lorne motioned for everyone to follow.

_The Hut_

Sheppard stirred a bit and Woolsey wondered if he was hurting or dreaming; his answer was quick in coming as he heard a groan from the colonel. Woolsey slid off of the cabinet and approached the bunk.

"John, you awake?"

"Yeah, I'm awake; must have tried to turn over, not a good idea with broken ribs. Help me sit up." Woolsey took the colonel's arm and helped him sit up, easing him back against the wall for support. "If you don't mind, I would like a couple or three of those Tylenol." Woolsey pulled the pill packs out of his vest and opened the canteen, handing it to Sheppard while he opened the packs.

"What time is it?"

Woolsey handed Sheppard the pills and then looked at his watch, "It's about 0230 hrs."

Sheppard swallowed the pills and sat quietly for a moment for the queasiness to subside. Woolsey had reclaimed his perch at the small window. He wondered what was going on in Woolsey's head; this little adventure they were on certainly wasn't in the IOA rule book. Woolsey wasn't a happy man, his attitude toward the holidays belied that and Sheppard decided there was no time like the present to find out why he was so unhappy.

"Richard, I wanted to talk to you about the holiday celebrations on Atlantis but we sort of got sidetracked with…this whole naquadah-getting kidnapped thing. You seem pretty unhappy about all the fuss but…celebrating the holidays is important to the people on Atlantis." Sheppard paused and took a deep, painful breath, hoping the pills would kick in some relief soon. "I need to know why you…restricted their fun. They really enjoyed last year and were looking forward to this holiday. I shouldn't ask this but I'm going to ask anyway. Does this have something to do with you going to Earth in December last year?"

Woolsey didn't look at Sheppard or speak for a few minutes; the colonel remained quiet. When he did speak, Woolsey's voice was very soft, "Colonel, I…I…yes, it has everything to do with last year. I've never been a fan of the holidays, even as a child; my parents were very serious people and they didn't celebrate the holidays. Then my younger sister married and had a child, a son named Nathan. She was determined for Nathan to grow up with fun since we hadn't. I spent many Christmas's with them, watching Nathan enjoy Santa and all the trimmings."

Woolsey turned to look at Sheppard, "Nathan became ill when he was 19, a benign tumor in his brain that was inoperable but very slow growing. He was a bright kid, scholarship at Harvard, wanted to be a lawyer like me. For the first few years, he was OK; he got through his undergraduate studies fine and entered Harvard law school. But the tumor continued to grow, much faster than the doctors expected, it was putting pressure on his brain and causing him to suffer continuous pain.

Last year, when he was 23, he committed suicide after he began to lose his vision. It was December 14th and his mother had been putting up decorations when she received the call. She was devastated; this wonderful, happy, young man was gone. My brother-in-law contacted the government agency that he thinks I work for and begged me to come; he couldn't do anything to help my sister; he was hoping I could.

"Being part of the SGC has given me some frightening moments when I thought I was going to die, like now for instance. But none of this is as bad as seeing that vacant, pained look in my sister's eyes when we buried her son. I haven't been able to get that vision out of my mind and with each decoration that went up and every "Happy Holiday' I heard, I could see her."

"Richard, I understand. I lost my mother when I was very young; she had a joy for life, bringing warmth and happiness to everyone. My father adored her and indulged her every whim; she loved any and every holiday, holidays were magical at our house. Then she was gone, died unexpectedly of a brain aneurism; my dad never forgave her for leaving him or me for looking just like her. My brother Dave, who not only looked like him but shared his interest in business, became his focus and I became a shadow, living on the fringes of my dad's life." Sheppard took another deep breath and tried to sit up a little straighter. "Richard, we all have pain that we don't want to talk about but letting that pain keep others from enjoying life isn't fair."

Woolsey looked away from the colonel, "So you put up a façade of a happy go-lucky air force pilot and don't allow anyone see your pain."

"Yeah, that's about it."

He looked back at Sheppard, "I see."

Woolsey turned back to looking out the small window and Sheppard decided that they had both said enough about their painful memories. He looked at his watch.

"I figure we should have three to four hours before sunrise. You need to get some sleep before we leave here, I'll take watch." Sheppard started to get up and couldn't, "Yeah, well, let these pills take effect and then I'll take watch."

_The Woods_

Stackhouse had been keeping the rest of the rescue team apprised of Ferish's progress. Ferish and his men were moving along a path that would eventually intersect with the Atlantis team and both Lorne and Ronon were determined to find Sheppard and Woolsey before that happened.

Ronon had quickened his pace and the rest of them, including Teyla, were hustling to keep up with the Satedan. When Ronon stopped just as quickly, the rest put on the brakes as best they could; however, Dr. Beckett ran into McKay which started McKay off.

"Carson, what the hell, can't you see we stopped? You could have hurt me!"

"Rodney, stop your whining." Beckett answered sharply.

Lorne wasn't quite as kind, "If you two don't shut up, I'll shut you up." His voice was low but he got the message across to the two bickering men.

Teyla moved next to Ronon, "What have you found?"

Ronon pointed to the base of a tree, "Two men knelt here, and I think I know where Sheppard and Woolsey are hiding."

Lorne had joined them, "What's going on?" Ronon reached for Lorne's P-90 and looked through the scope.

Handing Lorne's gun back to him, Ronon pointed toward a clearing in front of them, "I believe we will find Sheppard and Woolsey in there." Teyla and Lorne looked toward the area that Ronon was pointing to; they saw a small building standing in the middle of the clearing.

Lorne motioned McKay over, "Doctor, do your scans show anyone in that building?"

McKay shook his head, "No but I can't say there isn't; for some reason, the scanner goes blank when I point it toward that shack."

Ronon looked at Lorne, "Trust me, they're in there."

"Well, that's good enough for me." He tapped his COM, "Teldy, Isaacs, converge on my location. There is a small clearing that has a little building in the middle of it; Sheppard and Woolsey may be inside. I want that shack surrounded. Looks like a small window and door facing our direction, no side window on my right; no intel on other side and back, be careful. If no windows, I want people next to that building. Stackhouse, stay with those thugs and keep us informed. Lorne out."

It took about ten minutes to get everyone in place. Finding that there were no windows on either side or in the back, several Marines along with Ronon, Teyla and Lorne had surrounded the building. Ronon and Lorne were crouched under the small window waiting to make their move. Lorne tapped his COM twice, the signal that the mission was a go.

_The Hut_

Woolsey had been settled on the cot for about ten minutes and had just fallen asleep when he was jolted awake. He thought he heard a voice saying something like 'open the door and come out.'

"Colonel, what was that? Is Ferish here?" Woolsey jumped off the cot quickly, forgetting how sore he was until he straightened up; he uttered a groan.

Sheppard turned to face him; there was light coming in from the window but he couldn't register what was causing the light, however, it allowed him to see the smile on the colonel's face.

"The cavalry has arrived, Richard."

"Are you sure it's Atlantis?"

"I'm sure," and Sheppard pointed to the window where Woolsey could see a hand holding a small green box. "I am absolutely sure, it's Atlantis."

Woolsey sunk back down on the cot, "Oh, thank goodness."

Sheppard opened the door a crack and said, "Hey, Ronon, it worked, buddy."

Lorne stood up, "Colonel? Open the door all the way so that we can see you."

Sheppard opened the door and stepped onto the threshold and heard Rodney's voice, "Sheppard, are you OK?"

The next few minutes were a blur; Lorne sent most of the team back behind the tree line. Beckett and the paramedics had gone into the hut to examine their patients and Rodney refused to leave the hut until Sheppard and Woolsey did.

Sheppard could tell that Beckett was getting exasperated with Rodney being underfoot, "Rodney, why don't you wait outside? The good doctor will let us out of here shortly."

"No, the last time we left you and Woolsey on your own, you got kidnapped. I am not going anywhere," and he sat down on the cot next to Woolsey.

"Rodney, Dr. Beckett and Cpl. Brenner," pointing to the Marine guarding the door, "are not going to let that happen again. Now go and give Dr. Beckett and these guys some room, that's an order." McKay was not happy but he left the hut.

"Thank you, colonel; you are the only one who can make him listen." He was finished checking the colonel's ribs and turned to Woolsey, "You taped these ribs for the colonel?" Woolsey nodded and Beckett smiled, "You did a good job." Woolsey only nodded again as one of the paramedics began taking his blood pressure.

Lorne stuck his head in the door, "Colonel, we need to get you all out of here; Stackhouse just let us know that Ferish and his men are less than a half a click away. We need to get out of sight."

Beckett sent the paramedics out first and then helped Sheppard stand. He extended a hand to Woolsey and pulled him up and they started to leave the hut. But Sheppard held back and looked at Lorne, "I think I know how we can bait Ferish into thinking we are still inside here." He and Lorne carried out his plan and they headed for the tree line.

_The Woods_

_Atlantis_

McKay had begun monitoring Ferish's movements once the scanner picked them up. Lorne moved everyone away from the area where the rebels should be emerging from the forest; only Stackhouse's team was still moving, flanking the rebels from behind.

Beckett was irritated that he could not get Colonel Sheppard to let Lorne and the others take care of Ferish. He needed to rest, he had suffered some really serious deep bruises that may have gone all the way to the bone, had broken ribs, most likely a concussion, and Beckett wasn't yet convinced that the colonel wasn't bleeding internally. Yet, there he was at the front, in total control of the mission. If he wasn't so frustrated with him, he'd be proud of him. Damn fool didn't know when to stop.

Lorne and Ronon were next to Sheppard, taking cover behind a large tree and some really tall, thick bushes. The last report from Lt. Stackhouse was that Ferish and his men had stopped about a quarter click from the hut. The lieutenant thought they were just taking a stop to look around for tracks.

"Colonel, if Ferish keeps on this heading, he will come out right over there," Lorne pointed to a group of trees to their left about 200 ft from the hut. He looked up into the dark sky, "That moon that just popped over the horizon should help us; we can see the hut better which means so can Ferish. He might just fall for your trap, colonel."

"Let's hope so. Everyone in place?" Sheppard asked.

"Yes, sir, we're ready."

"Wish we had some way of talking to Ferish once he gets here; I would love to see his face when he realizes that we aren't in the hut and that he has walked into a trap."

"Yeah, I know, sir. I should have picked up one of those wrist radios that we found at the Assembly Hall. My mistake, sir."

"No, major, I didn't mean that you made a mistake. No reason for you to think that; besides, I remember that Mosston was wearing one when I first saw him but don't remember it on him after he died. I should have looked for it; there's my mistake," Sheppard chuckled and patted Lorne on the shoulder, 'Now, we're even."

"Yes, sir."

Richard Woolsey was also upsetting Dr. Beckett because he had left the doctor's side and had moved closer to Sheppard. Beckett assumed that over the last hours, Woolsey had gotten use to being with Sheppard and felt more secure around him. While he wasn't as injured as the colonel, he was badly injured as well; Beckett suspected that his cheekbone was broken, his kidneys could be bruised from a really bad blow to his back from that wooden rod, and he had nearly as many deep ugly bruises as the colonel. Yet, thought Beckett, here the Atlantis director, staying right in the action with Sheppard. Yes, he decided, Sheppard was a bad influence but in a good way.

Woolsey had made his way closer to the colonel just as the discussion about the Genii radio began. He was puzzled by the term, wrist radio; what could they be talking about and then he remembered. He reached in his inside jacket pocket and pulled out a small piece of equipment; a small electronic device with a leather band. Could this be a radio, he thought; he knew he had to show Sheppard.

"Colonel."

"Woolsey, you should be back there with Beckett." Sheppard answered.

"No, I am staying here with you, Ronon, and the major. Besides, I overheard your conversation about a Genii 'wrist' radio."

"Yeah?" Sheppard was getting intrigued.

"Is this a Genii radio?" Woolsey handed the device to Sheppard.

"Mr. Woolsey, I could kiss you…but I won't…yes, this is a Genii radio. Where did you find it?"

"It was lying on the table in the kitchen when I was gathering food. I stuck it in my jacket pocket and forgot about it once we got underway. I am sorry, John, I should have remembered."

"Hey, no apologies. We didn't really need it until now. This will help me mess with Ferish's mind. Now, please, Mr. Woolsey, go back with Dr. Beckett."

"No, colonel, I am staying right here." Sheppard looked at the resolute man and decided Woolsey was right, he should be there.

Their radios activated; Stackhouse was reporting, "Sirs, Ferish is on the move; he's staying on the same heading, he should be to the hut in less than five minutes."

Sheppard looked at Lorne, "Give the signals, Lorne." Lorne nodded and began to issue orders over the radio.

"Attention, we are going on radio silence. Click twice if you need to communicate; you are cleared to talk after you hear two clicks in return. Mission to commence at three clicks. Repeat mission to commence at three clicks. Lorne out."

The radios went silent as did everyone; they waited for Ferish to arrive.

_The Rebels_

Ferish and his men were approaching the clearing; Ferish had taken point having grown very tired of dealing with the fools he had with him. The best he could tell, they were heading back for the stream and he knew he was going to have to backtrack to see where Sheppard had left the stream bed.

As he navigated a patch of thick, thorny bushes, he could see what looked like a clearing ahead. He motioned for his men to stop and he crept ahead to get a better look at the area. He ducked down behind the large trunk of a tall tree and peered around it for a better look. He could see the hut, visible in the dim light from a distant moon that had just risen. From his vantage point, he was looking at the front and side of the hut.

He turned to Keiter who was the closest to him, "Give me those binoculars." Once he had them, he turned back toward the hut and raised the glasses. "Well, I believe we may have found our quarry. If I am not mistaken, that is a Cestian canteen; must have belonged to Mosston and we know he couldn't bring it here. I bet they dropped it when they went inside that hut."

Ferish was almost giddy and he reminded himself that it was very unbecoming of a Genii but this was Sheppard; celebrations would take place all over the Pegasus galaxy when word got out that the great Colonel John Sheppard was dead.

Ferish pulled out his weapon and looked back at Keiter, handing him the binoculars, "Get the men here, and hold in the tree line. Cover me; I am going to the hut. The rest of you stay here. I'll deal with this bastard myself."

_Atlantis_

Sheppard was watching Ferish; he could tell that the rebel had fallen for the canteen trick. He saw him pull one of his people to him, handing back the binoculars, and pull out his weapon.

"Lorne, give the signal the mission is a go." Sheppard whispered.

"Understood, sir." Lorne keyed his radio three times and the fun began.

_The Rebels_

As Ferish was making his way to the side of the hut, he didn't realize what was happening behind him. For the last ten minutes, Stackhouse and his team had been closely shadowing the rebels boxing them in; Sheppard had ordered the airmen and Marines with Special Ops training to the trees along the path that the rebels were taking to get to the hut. As the signal to commence the mission was given, the Atlantis team dropped from the trees. Quickly and silently, two rebels went down without knowing what hit them. They were efficiently tied up and left on the path as the two Marines moved toward their teammates.

The third rebel turned as he heard the Marine drop behind him but he didn't have a chance to sound the alarm before Sgt. Mehra took him out with a quick, clean punch. She leaned over and whispered, "Oo-rah. Don't mess with the Marines, dirt bag."

Keiter was standing near the tree line, watching the rebel leader as he worked his way to the front of the hut. Keiter was a Genii also and he didn't like Ferish; he had joined Ferish because he actually did believe that a Pegasus alliance was a bad thing. Then he discovered that Ferish was just looking to loot and pillage as many worlds as he could. He was going to get out once this was over; maybe go back to Genii. Ferish was now under the window of the hut and he said quietly to himself, "I hope the colonel is as good as his reputation and he kills Ferish."

From behind, he felt a strong hand close over his mouth, an arm press across his throat and another hand grab his right hand which was reaching for his weapon; then he heard a whisper in his ear, "Lieutenant Morgan Salem, US Air Force, and the colonel is that good. Goodnight." The choke hold took its toll and Keiter went down. Lt. Salem thanked Lt. James, who had grabbed Keiter's hand and taken his weapon, then looked behind him and saw the other two members of the 'tree team'; they all flashed the all clear signal. Salem keyed his radio twice, waited for the return clicks, and then quietly said, "Done."

_Atlantis_

They watched as Ferish made his way to the window and then stood up between the window and the door. Ronon leaned over to Sheppard, "He looks a bit sure of himself doesn't he."

Sheppard nodded, "Ego has never been a problem for the Genii."

Ferish used the butt of his gun to rap on the hut door. He seemed a bit surprised at the tinny sound that the door made but he hit the door with the gun again. Then he stepped back and yelled:

"My dear Colonel Sheppard, I know you are in there. You might was well come on out, you aren't going to win this time. I am sorry to say but I fear your life is about over. I think I'll take your dead body back to the hall with me and throw it in the cell with your friends so they can say goodbye before I kill them.

"Come on Sheppard, we might as well get this over with; I'll even promise to make your death quick, I think you have suffered enough. Besides, I need to get back to the lovely Teyla; I look forward to consoling her on your tragic death."

Ferish was beginning to get angry, "Don't think you can win, Sheppard. There's only two of you and five of us; not good odds for you.

Sheppard chuckled, "I think it's time to let him know what the real odds are." He raised the Genii radio and keyed the mic.

"Ferish, you might want to look to your left, I don't think your odds are as good as you think."

"Sheppard! How did you get a radio? You took Mosston's didn't you; I am going to make you hurt before you die for killing him!"

"Yeah, took a bunch of his stuff. You can have the canteen back if you want. And I remind you, to look to your left; there's a surprise for you."

Ferish slowly looked toward the tree line where he had left Keiter and saw all four of his men lying on the ground. He shook his head, "I really am beginning to hate you, Sheppard. Come out here and fight me like a man!"

"Hey, come on in, doors open. I'm all alone. I sent Woolsey to take care of your boys; he wasn't as hurt as I am. Your boys did a number on me. Woolsey's long gone, so it is just you and me. Isn't that how you like it?"

Ferish was so angry that he wasn't thinking, "Get out here!" He then opened the door and fired into the hut over and over. Rushing in, he realized that Sheppard wasn't there. He grabbed onto a cabinet to keep from falling over; his anger was consuming him and he couldn't breath.

"Where are you? I told you to face me like a man!"

"Come on outside, I'm here." Sheppard said very calmly.

Ferish rushed out of the hut and came face to face with Sheppard. He pointed his weapon at Sheppard but his hand wasn't steady and he kept dropping his arm to his side.

"I will make you pay for this; no matter what happens don't forget, I have your precious team and my men have orders to kill them all if I don't return by daylight. So you may think you have won but you haven't won anything."

"You might want to rethink that plan, Ferish. That isn't going to work either." Sheppard swung his arm forward and out of the trees came the entire Atlantis rescue team, Ronon, Teyla, Woolsey, and Dr. McKay along with Persim in front.

"It's over, Ferish."

Ferish looked completely stunned. "How…"

"You underestimated my team; you shouldn't have done that. Give up, Ferish."

"No, never…and I am taking you with me for Kolya."

Ferish raised his gun and fired but not before Ronon's weapon caught his arm and the shot went into the air. The former Genii soldier fell to the ground.

From behind Sheppard, there was a rush by the Atlantis military; they surrounded Ferish and handcuffed him. Two Marines picked him up and pushed him toward Sheppard.

"I told you, it's over." Sheppard was leaning against Ronon with Woolsey next to him.

"You should have killed me." Ferish dropped his head.

"Yeah, someone else said that to me once but I don't kill just to kill. But I will kill when I have to; today, I didn't have to." He motioned for the Marines to take Ferish away.

_The Hut_

Adrenaline is an amazing compound; in times of stress, it can help keep the body and mind alert; even help people perform incredible feats but when the stressor is gone and the adrenaline levels drop, that energy goes away quickly.

Sheppard collapsed shortly after the Marines took Ferish to one of the paramedics so his arm could be treated. Ronon had realized that Sheppard was getting weaker while the Marines were tying Ferish up and had moved closer to him; the colonel seemed to sense the support and leaned against Ronon. Ronon was not surprised when Sheppard muttered that he was getting dizzy and started to fall. The Satedan caught him and laid him gently on the ground.

Dr. Beckett was already heading toward his patients when he saw Sheppard go down and he came running to the colonel's side. He looked up at Woolsey who wasn't looking much better and then over at Teyla and Rodney who had rushed to Sheppard as well.

"I need to get them inside that hut," he looked around and saw Lorne. "Major, come here." Lorne saw that they were all gathered around Sheppard and he rushed over.

"Doc, is he OK?"

"Yes, lad, he is just very tired and I need to get him inside that hut but that fool shot it up; please go check and make certain that the hut is safe. If it is, I want both of these men taken inside."

Lorne raised an eyebrow, "Both?" Beckett just sighed and pointed behind Lorne. The major turned and saw McKay holding onto Richard Woolsey, who had just collapsed as well.

There were some broken cabinets in the hut and debris on the cots that Teyla and Lorne cleaned off. Ronon and Lorne carried the colonel into the hut, Dr. McKay and Isaacs carried Woolsey.

Beckett and the paramedics got IV's running in both men and some analgesics to help ease the pain from the horrid bruises. Lorne had disappeared for a bit but Beckett looked up as the major entered the hut and came over to him.

"They OK?"

"Resting well, both are asleep and I doubt they will wake for quite a while. Major, I am worried about the colonel; he needs a scan, I am concerned about his head wounds. Neither of them is in shape to make the trip back to the farmhouse where we left the transports, so I don't know what we are going to do."

"Well, that's what I came to talk to you about; I just spoke to Orthan; there are cultivated fields just west of here and there are roads that the transports can use. Orthan, Ozem, and the Tegerans are going back to the farmhouse, get the transports and bring them as close as they can to this location. We won't have too far to take the colonel and Mr. Woolsey once they get back.

"That's good, major. Now, the best thing is for these two to rest as well as everyone else. It's been a long day and night."

"Yes, sir, I am going to order everyone to stand down with the exception of a watch team. You get some rest, doc."

"I will when these two are well again." Beckett settled down on the floor near Sheppard's cot and Lorne left him, knowing Sheppard and Woolsey were safe at last.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes: **Thanks to all of you who have been so kind to let me know that you have enjoyed this story. I hope you liked the last chapters. This is a bit longer than the other but I don't like loose ends unless there is another story to be written.

**A Little Cheer**

_Infirmary_

"I don't care, Carson, I'm staying until Sheppard wakes up and don't go get Jennifer to see she can get me to leave. I had this conversation with her last night and she lost."

"Rodney, I am not asking you to leave and not come back. I am just asking you to go to your quarters for a couple of hours, get some breakfast, take a shower, and get some rest. Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard are doing fine, the colonel will wake soon. Besides, he won't be alone; I am certain that Teyla will be back shortly and Ronon is here and I am here. Go."

"No." Rodney sat down in a chair next to Sheppard's bed, crossed his arms and refused to look at Beckett.

Beckett looked at Ronon, pleading for help. Ronon walked over to Rodney, leaned down and whispered something to the doctor, who looked up at his teammate, then got up and left.

"What did you say to him?"

"That he smelled and needed a shower; so I gave him a choice, either take a shower in his quarters or I would give him one here. Then he can come back."

"Ronon, he doesn't smell!"

"I know, but you wanted him out of here for a bit didn't you?" Ronon sat down in the chair Rodney had vacated and smiled. Beckett just walked away.

Dr. Jennifer Keller looked up from her computer as Beckett walked in her office. "You still look tired; did you get enough rest, Carson?"

"Beckett sat down, "To quote, Rodney; no. I am not leaving again until Sheppard is awake. We did managed get Rodney to at least go take a shower."

"Really? How did you manage that feat?"

"Well, Ronon told him he smelled and either go take a shower or he would give him one. He doesn't smell, you know."

Keller looked shocked and then laughed, "Only Ronon could get by with that; poor Rodney, it appears Ronon knows what switch to throw when it comes to our brilliant scientist. Don't worry, Rodney will be fine, I'll tell him it was a joke."

"Well, at least, it got him out of here for a bit."

"There is that. I just got the colonel's latest blood work back, looks like the bleeding from the liver laceration has stopped; his hemoglobin and hematocrit numbers are on the rise, almost back to normal range. His brain scan showed slight bruising on his brain but his cranial pressure is good. We got lucky, or maybe I should say that John got lucky; from the description that Mr. Woolsey gave us, the colonel took some pretty hard hits to the head."

Beckett sighed, "That he did, as did Mr. Woolsey. This was a bad thing; it was lucky that we found them when we did. How about the rest of his injuries."

"Two broken ribs, the fifth and sixth on his left side and we found an incomplete fracture on the eighth rib on his right side; most likely that one was caused by whatever blow cut his liver. He has numerous deep tissue bruises, a severely bruised jaw and two black eyes."

"So, the colonel's treatment is rest, rest, and more rest."

Yes, I want him on total bed rest for the next 48 hours." Beckett nodded in agreement with Keller's assessment.

"Now, Mr. Woolsey; how is he doing?"

"He is simply very bruised and battered; deep tissue bruises, two black eyes, nose looks bad but not broken. It doesn't appear that he was hit with the same intensity as the colonel. He did take a bad blow to the lower back causing a bruised kidney. There is no sign of bleeding so we just need to monitor him; I think it will heal on its own without any complications. Again, we were lucky."

"Aye that we were." Beckett leaned back in the chair, rolling his head from side to side.

"You look exhausted still; you shouldn't be back on duty."

Beckett smiled, "Well having that emergency c-section on P3X-734 at 3 a.m., then coming back here and finding out about the trouble on Tegera, you being in surgery with Dr. Mays' appendix, and the rescue team in need of a doctor, I was the logical choice. Especially since I have been on more than one of these rescue runs where Colonel Sheppard is involved. I shouldn't have gone to my quarters last night but I think I am glad you ordered me to go."

"It was not last night, it was 0400 hrs and here it is 0800 hrs and you are already back here. At least you do listen a little better than Rodney" Keller laughed.

"Aye, that I do but then the only person more stubborn that Rodney around here is Sheppard. The rest of us listen fairly well. Now, you listen, since you have been here all night, go check on Rodney and make sure he gets some breakfast at least and you get some rest. I'll hold down the fort for a while."

"Good luck with that, sheriff; Sheppard's back in town." They both laughed.

_Control Room_

It was nearly 0900 and Major Lorne had just arrived in the control room when the gate activated; Sgt. Campbell announced 'unauthorized off-world activation' and immediately the Marines on duty took a defensive perimeter around the gate.

"Chuck, any teams out?"

"No, major, there are no scheduled off-world missions until after Christmas, the colonel didn't want anyone caught off-base during the holiday unless there was an emergency. We haven't received an IDC yet either."

"Well, it can't be the wind, so let's wait and see who wants us." A burst of static sounded in their COM's as they heard Persim's voice requesting to speak to someone from Atlantis.

"Persim, this is Major Lorne; it's good to hear from you."

"Major, good to hear you as well; I am with the governor and we have a request."

"What can we do you and the governor?" The major got Chuck's attention and covering his mic he asked the gate tech to get Teyla to the control room.

Major, first we would like to inquire as to the condition of Mr. Woolsey and Colonel Sheppard."

"They are doing well, the colonel is sleeping quite a bit but the doctor said he was going to be fine."

"That is good to hear; we have been most worried. Major, the governor and I would like to come to Atlantis. We have much we would like to discuss; would it be possible for us to come through the gate now?"

Teyla had arrived, she had been listening to the conversation; Chuck had patched her in as soon as Lorne had requested for her to come to the control room. She nodded to Lorne, who covered his mic again. "Let them come, we need to maintain a relationship until Mr. Woolsey and the colonel are well enough to resume their talks."

"Persim, you and Governor Lalrahn are more than welcome to visit Atlantis; please come through the gate."

"Thank you, Major. We also have some gifts for you; there are three others with us but they can return immediately to Tegera once they have delivered the gifts."

"No problem, the Tegeran people are welcome to Atlantis."

He motioned to Chuck to cut the audio and looked over the railing at the Marines, "Stand down guys, friendlies coming through the gate."

He and Teyla went down the gate room stairs and arrived at the gate as the governor, Persim, and three Tegerans bearing small carts full of fresh vegetables, breads and pastries, bolts of fabric and other items.

Teyla bowed in the Tegeran tradition and smiled warmly, "Governor, Persim, gentlemen, welcome to Atlantis."

Both the governor and Persim were overwhelmed and stood speechless as they looked about the gate room and beyond. The governor found his voice first, "By the Ancestors, Atlantis does exist. Of course we knew it was true but to see it, to really see the home where the Ancestors lived; it is remarkable."

"Although we may live here governor, we are still as in awe of Atlantis as you are. We treasure this city and respect it." Teyla smiled.

"Having seen what you would do for my people and your own, I have no doubt what this city means to you."

Governor, let us show you to the conference room; we are anxious to find out how your people are doing after the last few day's events. Please, follow us." With Teyla leading the way, they climbed the stairs to the conference room.

_The Infirmary_

Richard Woolsey had tried to eat the soft unappetizing lunch he was given but found he had little appetite. Although he felt much better, he was still very tired and very sore. The muscles in his arms and legs were painful and tender but they felt much better after one of the nurses had rubbed some analgesic cream onto them. His nose was hurting and he still had a headache.

At least he was home, he thought. Home, he had just referred to Atlantis as home; he wondered when he began to feel that way. He looked around the infirmary; Colonel Sheppard's bed was two beds away. There was an empty bed in between; a bed he believed that he saw Dr. McKay sleeping on when he woke up during the night. Surrounding the colonel was Dr. McKay, Dr. Zelenka and one of the Marines. He was shocked to see Ronon sitting next to his bed.

He looked across the ward and saw Dr. Mays; he wasn't certain what had happened to him but he was sleeping, looking quite comfortable. There was a scientist, he had forgotten her name, who was sitting next to him; she was quietly typing on a tablet. There were what appeared to be handmade cards on the bed stand, along with a poinsettia plant. In fact, he and the colonel also had a poinsettia and cards. Home, home is where people care about you; maybe Atlantis was home, after all.

Woolsey had decided to go back to sleep and had just closed his eyes, when he heard Dr. McKay's excited voice, "Carson, Carson come here, he's waking up." Ronon stood up, the young Marine scurried out of the way as Beckett came flying down the aisle. For the next few minutes there was a flurry of activity around Sheppard's bed and finally he heard Sheppard voice, a bit weak but clear. "Rodney, I have told you about crowding Dr. Beckett when he's working. Go over there and stand with Ronon." Rodney didn't move, "Now, Rodney." Reluctantly, he moved over next to Ronon.

"Hey, McKay, you smell better." Ronon was grinning at McKay.

"Listen, Conan, I didn't smell to begin with, you were just trying to run me off."

"It worked, McKay."

McKay started to retort but didn't have a comeback so he started on Carson again.

"Carson, how is he."

"He's fine, Rodney, now be quiet." Beckett continued to examine Sheppard for a few minutes, added something to his IV that the nurse brought to him, and then helped Sheppard sit up.

"There you go, lad. Now, how does that feel? Can ya breathe OK?"

Sheppard took a breath and answered, "Breathing seems to be working. How's Woolsey?"

"Ask him yourself." Beckett pointed to Woolsey's bed and Sheppard looked over at the Atlantis director.

"You doing OK, Richard."

"Yes, John, I am fine; it's good to home."

"Yes, it is." Sheppard smiled because he realized that Woolsey finally understood; Atlantis was home.

_The Conference Room_

The governor was finishing his coffee, which he seemed to take a great liking to, "Teyla, I am pleased that we have had this opportunity to talk; I realize that Persim had already expressed to you and the others that we were incredibly embarrassed by our behavior. We are stronger people than we have shown you; you must let us prove that."

Teyla only smiled, "Governor, we understand. Your families and your colleagues were at great risk, yet your people found the courage to stand up to a very bad man and help us to not only free your people but ours as well. We are very grateful.

She continued, "When the colonel and Mr. Woolsey are well enough, we can continue the discussions regarding your petition to the coalition and the naquadah. I promise you, Mr. Woolsey is a very fair man and he will protect your interest as well as ours."

"Of that, we have no doubt. Now Teyla, Major Lorne, would it be possible for us to see the Mr. Woolsey and the colonel for just a few minutes?"

"Governor, I do not know but let me check with the infirmary and see." Lorne walked out to contact the doctors.

_The Infirmary_

Dr. Keller had returned to the infirmary and she and Dr. Beckett were reluctant to allow the colonel and Mr. Woolsey any more visitors than the ones they had no choice about but Woolsey insisted.

Dr. Keller met the governor, Persim, and Teyla at the door. "It is very nice to meet you and I want to thank you for your help in getting our people back. I would ask that you only stay a few minutes. Both of these men are very tired and need to rest."

The governor took Keller's hands, "I promise we will only be here for a brief time, but this is important to us." She led them to her patients.

When the governor and Persim got their first look at the two Atlantian leaders, the shock of their condition was evident on their face. Sheppard noticed and smiled as best he could, "We've looked better."

Both Tegerans were shaken; Persim spoke first, "Colonel, Mr. Woolsey, we are so very sorry for your suffering. We are ashamed that we were not strong enough to fight them and not allow this to happen. We asked for your forgiveness."

Woolsey spoke, "Gentlemen, there is no need for apology. Your citizens were in danger as were mine. We are both fortunate that we were able to free all from the clutches of such a vile and dangerous man. I believe that we have both found strength in the other and we now have a mutual respect to build our relationship on."

"You know, governor, this might not have gotten so out of hand if Ferish and his men had not wanted me for revenge. If anything, our past actions brought this on all of us; perhaps we just need to put it behind us and move forward." Sheppard looked a bit winded but he managed to say what he needed to say. Persim walked over to him and put out his hand as he had discovered from Lorne was the proper greeting for these men from Earth. Sheppard grasped his hand.

The governor walked over to Woolsey's bed, "We have something for both of you; when someone on Tegera shows courage in the face of danger and accepts that danger in order to protect our people, they are awarded The Medal of Tegera. Normally, there is much fanfare and celebration when this medal is given as it is our highest honor but we felt we could not wait."

The governor and Persim each took a box from a pocket in their tunics and opened them, handing them to Sheppard and Woolsey. Inside was a gold colored medal adorned with the seal of Tegera and hanging from a silken cord; both Woolsey and Sheppard were speechless.

"We cannot accept such an honor, governor." Woolsey finally said.

"Please it would be an insult to Tegera for you to refuse. We want you to return to Tegeran soil as champions of our people and hope when you are well enough, we can hold the celebration these medals require."

Both men nodded, embarrassed even more. The governor smiled, "We will take our leave and let you get the rest you need. Please let us know when you are ready to resume our talks. Good day, gentlemen."

As they began to walk out, Woolsey stopped them, "We have a celebration every year that is called Christmas and it involves a feast. We are having that feast in two days; we would be honored if you and several representatives of your people join us to celebrate our families, our friends, and our home."

The governor looked positively ecstatic and said, "We would be honored."

Teyla hooked her arm though the governor's and said, "As I walk you to the gate, I will be happy to give you details for our Christmas Day."

Sheppard looked over at Woolsey who simply smiled, "Well, colonel, it is home."

_The Infirmary_

It was late, almost midnight and Rodney was asleep in a chair next to Sheppard's bed. He woke with a start as he heard the colonel start to get out of bed.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?"

"Rodney, be quiet, you are going to wake everyone. I simply need to go to the little colonel's room and I don't want to get the nurses involved. Besides 'Nurse Godzilla' is on tonight and I do not want to have to deal with her."

"You mean the one that relishes giving shots?" Sheppard nodded yes.

"Here, I'll help you."

Rodney managed to get Sheppard to and back from the rest room and into bed and the nurse in question never knew.

"Thanks." Sheppard struggled to get settled and Rodney help him get more comfortable.

"Rodney, why are you still here?"

"What do you mean, you're sick, that's what we do."

"No Rodney, we stay with each other when we are injured until we know that we will be OK. I'm going to be OK; you need to sleep in your own bed, you look exhausted."

"No, I am not going to leave you until you can walk out of here."

"Rodney, what's going on?"

Rodney dropped his head into his hands, "We abandoned you, we should have never let you and Woolsey go into that office without us. If there had been enough of us, we could have overpowered them and then you and Woolsey wouldn't be hurt."

Sheppard breathed deeply, a bit surprised it didn't hurt as much, "Stop it, you are not responsible for this; Ferish was. Woolsey and I both knew that we were walking into a possible trap but no one knew who was behind this at that time. This is not your fault, Teyla's fault, Ronon's, mine, Woolsey's, not anyone's. You've been here long enough to know that things happen, Rodney, no matter how well we prepare."

"Yeah, go with the hand we get dealt." Rodney looked at Sheppard, "You and your silver lining; well, I guess so far, it's worked."

"I like silver linings, Rodney, and I would like to get some sleep. Go to your own bed and get some sleep yourself. You can bring me a real breakfast tomorrow morning; I am tired of this soft crap."

Rodney smiled, "You're on." He got up and walked off but turned around one more time. "Sheppard, you really OK?"

"Yeah, I'm OK, buddy, Good night."

Sheppard had closed his eyes when he heard someone sit down in the chair next to his bed. Not opening his eyes, he spoke, "Rodney, I told you to go to your own bed."

"I believe he was heading toward the atrium as I passed him, colonel."

"Teyla, not you, too. I am fine, no one is to blame and you need to be with Kaanan and Torren, it's late."

"No, John, I need to say something to you. I am ashamed that we waited so long to come after you. Both Lorne and I were so torn between what we knew we needed to do and what you had told us to do. We should have done what we needed to do. We shouldn't have waited three hours after you and Mr. Woolsey went to that office alone. We shouldn't have let you go alone."

Sheppard closed his eyes for a moment; how could he ever make these people, his friends, understand that they were never responsible for what happened to him. Yet every time he was in danger or injured, they would move mountains to protect him. What was it Woolsey said, this was home. Maybe that was it, home and family, his family. The family he chose.

"Teyla, listen; Woolsey and I knew that we were most likely walking into a trap, we just didn't know who was behind this. I gave you and Lorne, everyone, clear orders not to interfere unless you had concrete information that we were in danger. According to the report Lorne gave me right after dinner, you did everything just as we discussed. Besides we weren't in that office very long, even if you had come thirty minutes later it wouldn't have mattered, we were long gone. If you had come with us, he might have killed you then."

"I know all that, John. But that doesn't make any of us feel less guilty that we contributed to you and Mr. Woolsey being beaten."

"Did you ever think that this is how it was supposed to happen? We are all here, Woolsey and I will be fine, and we have made new friends on Tegera. Good friends, Teyla. Hell, we even got medals. How can that be wrong?"

"Why do I try with you, John Sheppard? You always manage to make me feel better, even when I know better."

"Must be my charming personality." Sheppard grinned.

Teyla laughed, "Well, it not because of your looks, not today anyway."

Sheppard feigned hurt, "Now you have wounded me."

"Just understand this, Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, I will not stand by for that long waiting on your fate or the fate of anyone on this base, so do not ask or order me to that again."

"Fair enough, now go, you need sleep and so do I."

"Good night, John." She squeezed his hand and left.

It took Sheppard a while to fall asleep.

_Christmas Eve_

Ronon was pushing Sheppard's wheelchair toward the Mess Hall; Sheppard had tried to walk to the Christmas Eve party on his own but neither of his doctors would allow it. Woolsey hadn't tried and Lorne was pushing his wheelchair in front of Sheppard and Ronon.

"Hey, Sheppard, about Tegera. You know, we probably should have..." Ronon was interrupted by Sheppard's index finger pointed upward.

"No, do not start; I have already been through this with Teyla and Rodney. You did nothing wrong, none of you, so don't go there."

"But, Sheppard…"

"No, do not bring it up again."

"Well, I was only going to say, we should tell them about the gum thing."

"Oh, yeah, that. I guess we should. Hell, it worked, who knew." Sheppard was grinning.

They entered the Mess Hall and immediately, Sheppard looked at the tree, it was beautiful. Then he looked around the room at the faces of the people of Atlantis, the Athosians from the mainland, and the crew of the Daedalus that had arrived in the afternoon. They were laughing, eating, drinking; exactly what he had hoped for.

They had decided to have the gift exchange on Christmas Eve because nearly everyone would have all of Christmas day off and the ones who were going to work were on very short shifts. Sheppard had wanted people to have the day off with their friends and enjoy the big feast tomorrow.

At 2000 hrs, Santa suddenly appeared in the hall and the gift giving began. The Atlantis crew didn't know that the Daedalus was bringing presents from their families so there were a lot of very happy Atlantians.

Sheppard was sitting at a large table, punch in hand and a few cookies ahead of Rodney when one of Santa's helpers brought him a present, a big long box. He was puzzled until he read the card; _I hope you can use this wherever you are and that you are safe. Happy Holidays, Dave._

He opened the box and found a new driver and putter for his golf club set, supposed to be some new high tech clubs, new golf balls, golf gloves, some golf magazines and some golf videos. He was a bit overwhelmed and when he glanced up at Woolsey, he saw he was looking at him. He raised the card to show Woolsey.

"From my brother."

Woolsey smiled and held up what appeared to be very old leather bound, gold-leafed book. "From my sister."

The presents kept coming, Torren was the one who seemed to rake in the most, although Teyla and Kanaan seemed to be confused about a lot of the educational toys. Sheppard got him a football and Teyla shook her head but smiled.

"I have a question, colonel. It seems that all of the Athosian children and adults have received a present. How did that happen?"

"We have explained Santa Clause; he did it."

To which, Rodney replied, "Yeah, that Santa with the messy hair."

Teyla then turned to look at both Sheppard and Ronon. "All right, Ronon you promised an explanation of how you were so certain what direction the colonel and Mr. Woolsey took from the farmhouse. How did you know?"

Woolsey looked up from his new book, "I get it now, colonel; it was the gum."

Sheppard laughed, "Yeah, it was the gum." Teyla was looking very puzzled as Sheppard continued. "Ronon and I were really restless one night after we returned from a mission, so we went on a long run. After we had run enough, we sat out on the pier for a long time; I asked him how he learned to hunt and track and he was telling me about tracking. Well, I reached for a piece of gum and had this thought, wonder if this green colored gum could be use to mark a trail if one of us was on the run or kidnapped. So we decided to try it; we were going to go to the mainland and test it but Tegera came first. I thought it was worth a shot, Ronon remember and here we are."

Ronon added, "I looked for the first piece and when I found it, I knew he was going to keep it up. He left a big piece next to the door handle on the hut. That's how I was sure they were in there.

"Colonel, are you telling me that our rescue was hinging on Ronon seeing wads of gum." Woolsey asked, a bit incredulously.

"Yeah, that's about it. Surprised us that it worked, might not all the time but this time, it did."

They talked about other weird ways to mark trails as the evening wound down. Just before they started to leave, Sheppard got up and went over to sit next to Woolsey.

"Richard, I just wanted to tell you that if I had to be on the run with anyone, I would never worry if it was you. You handled yourself very well out there in a very difficult situation."

"Thank you, John, but we would not have gotten out of this without your skills and intellect, and gum." Woolsey laughed.

"Yeah…that is what saved us."

"I spoke to Lorne this afternoon and to Ronon, apparently they both felt that Lt. Isaacs performed above and beyond the call of duty during this incident. He was observant and contributed to my team getting out the detention center; even Rodney talked about his ability to take command and protect them. I am going to put him in for an accommodation and he is in line for a promotion to captain. I need for you to make that happen as soon as possible."

"I will, as soon as I am back and we have all the mission reports, I will file the request for you; just be sure to get your letter of recommendation." Sheppard nodded he would.

Also, colonel, I had a conversation with General Landry and the IOA late this afternoon. I told them in no uncertain terms that we were going to negotiate a fair and equitable deal with Tegera for the naquadah that would include the needs of the people of the planet, the Pegasus coalition and Earth. That there would be no further discussion about Earth only rights to the mineral.

Sheppard smiled, "Good job. It's the right thing to do." He continued, "Colonel Caldwell stopped by the infirmary after he arrived to see how we were doing; I think you were in therapy at the time. He also had something for me that I had asked him to bring me." Sheppard pulled out a small box and handed it to Woolsey. "Merry Christmas, Mr. Woolsey."

Woolsey looked very surprised, "Colonel, I had no idea; I didn't…" Sheppard held up his hand and shook his head. "That is not what this is about, open it."

He took the lid off of the small black box and inside found a small badge, a USAF badge. He looked up at the colonel. "John, what is this."

"Well, that is a Command and Control Badge issued by the Air Force to anyone in an active command, generally given to non-flying personnel or base commander. While it isn't something that you can wear, it is something that you have earned. I felt you should have one; you've done a good job here."

"Colonel, I don't know what to say."

"Then don't, let's just enjoy this holiday."

"You were right about this holiday thing. The card from my sister and bother-in-law, simply said_, Life goes on and he would want us to not forget that he loved the holidays, so my dear brother, Happy Holidays._

That's good; I had a little good cheer from my brother that I wasn't expecting. There may be hope for us yet."

Woolsey laughed, "I think there might be, colonel. Especially since I requested that Colonel Caldwell turn over the several cases of champagne that he keeps on the Daedalus and thought no one knew about. He should have thought about General Landry, who just happened to mention it to me today. So we will have a lot of champagne for the big New Years Eve party next week. I am not certain he was happy but he was cooperative."

Sheppard leaned back in his chair winching a bit and said, "New Year's Party? Good deal. Well, by next week, we will be healthy enough to enjoy it. Richard, you are OK in my book."


End file.
